Follow UsIndia’s star opener Yashasvi Jaiswal came under heavy scrutiny after dropping multiple catches in the gully region during England’s first innings of the first Test at Headingley, Leeds. The match is currently evenly poised, but India would have been in complete control if Jaiswal hadn’t dropped those catches. R Ashwin, however, has asked fans to cut him some slack.
“There has been some talk about his catching in the slip cordon. Yes, he has found it tough. But let’s all just understand something - and cut him some slack - which we often fail to do. It’s difficult to catch, not just in English conditions,” the former India off-spinner said in a video on his X handle, as reported by News18.
“It’s cold weather and it’s also about the feel of the Dukes ball. It can take some time to adapt. The SG ball feels nice and comfortable in the hand, the Kookaburra feels smaller. The Dukes is harder and, definitely, from a fielder’s perspective, feels bigger, and it’s not easy.”
Talking about Rishabh Pant’s twin centuries in the first Test, Ashwin added: “A twin hundred for Rishabh - a massive achievement. His modus operandi has always been up for questioning. Yet again against Brydon Carse, he played a slog-sweep, which didn’t seem like percentage cricket, and there was a false shot which led to his dismissal at Melbourne.
“Very questionable tactics, but that’s the way he has been going about his business. If he’s going to take the sword, we might as well judge him by his performance and not by the way he does it.”