Spinners have a big role to play in the Indian Premier League. They remove pace off the ball and bamboozle batsmen with their variations and mind games. One expert at the art is off-spinner R. Ashwin, who has played a big role in the India’s current era of dominance in Tests. With sufficient consistency and a constant pursuit of excellence, including modification of his skill-set, Ashwin is a handy spinner on any track with a hint of assistance to spin, and in any format.
The Kings XI Punjab captaincy is in some ways a recognition of his excellent record as an India player.
In the three matches he has played so far, Ashwin has picked up for four wickets, with a frugal economy rate of about seven. When he captains his team on Thursday, he will be up against another spinner, albeit from a different discipline. Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan has similarly been effective for Sunrisers Hyderabad; his quality can be gauged from the respect he receives from batsmen. Against Mumbai Indians, for example, he gave away only 13 runs in his four overs — an economy rate of 3.25.
Both spinners can assume useful roles for their team, for their spells may make a crucial difference between their teams’ success and failure.
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