Photo: Nottinghamshire CCC/TwitterFollowing on for a spectacular performance in just his second County game of the 2019 season, Ravichandran Ashwin managed to elevate his own lofty standards by picking 10 wickets in the game against Surrey in the County Championships, while representing Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge.
The spinner, who captains Kings XI Punjab in the VIVO Indian Premier League, was the star of the show for Nottinghamshire as he picked six wickets in both innings, tormenting the Surrey batsmen with his spin and variations.
Bow-l-oving here @TrentBridge, blessed to be making a career out of what I love. pic.twitter.com/jywQc1Sd4r
— Ashwin Ravichandran (@ashwinravi99) July 13, 2019
Bowling first against the defending champions, Ashwin accounted for both of the visitors’ openers, trapping Rory Burns and Ryan Patel leg before wicket. He nabbed two more of the top order, getting South African Dean Elgar and young English prospect Jamie Smith to reduce Surrey to 141/4. He came back into the attack to dismiss tailenders Gareth Batty and Jordan Clark as the opposition were bundled out for 240 with Ashwin registering figures of 6/69.
The 32-year-old then put on a stellar show with the bat as well, top scoring for Nottinghamshire with 27 runs despite the team collapsing and being all-out for 116. Ashwin then followed on from where he left off in the second innings, getting Patel bowled off the first ball while also dismissing Elgar and Batty twice in the matter of days. The off-spinner got three more to end with 6/75 in the second innings as well, taking charge of the Nottinghamshire bowling attack with a match haul of 12/144.
Photo: Nottinghamshire CCC/TwitterHe shone with the bat in the second innings as well, top-scoring again with a 79-ball 66* with 8 fours and a six.
Ashwin now has 23 wickets in the 2019 County Championships and has been a welcome addition to this Nottinghamshire bowling attack, adjusting to foreign pitches and conditions almost immediately, proving his versatility and quality.
