The heavy humidity at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Wednesday evening compelled the umpires to intervene and change the ball during CSK’s chase, leaving RR’s Ashwin “surprised” with 2/25.
Ravichandran Ashwin of the Rajasthan Royals was perplexed by the umpires’ decision to change the ball on their own in the IPL match against the Chennai Super Kings due to dew, and he advocated for consistency when making such decisions.
Ashwin, who returned figures of 2/25 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Wednesday night, was “surprised” when the umpires intervened and changed the ball during the chase due to the heavy humidity.
The Royals defeated the four-time IPL champions by three runs in a last-ball contest, as CSK captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja were unable to score 21 runs in the final over.
Ashwin stated that he had never witnessed the stewards replace the ball due to excessive dew. “I’m quite astonished that the umpires changed the ball to dew by themselves. This has never occurred before, and I am quite astonished. Sincerely, a few of the judgements made on the pitch during this year’s IPL have left me a little perplexed’, said the India legend at the post-match press conference.
“It left me confused in a positive or negative manner. Ashwin, who was named ‘Player of the Match’, stated, “I believe you need a little bit of equilibrium.”
“We are not requesting that the bowling ball be altered. But the ball was changed at the discretion of the umpires. I did ask the umpire, and he confirmed that we can alter it. “I just hope that every time there is dew going forward in this IPL, they can change it. You can do whatever you want, but you need to maintain a standard going forward,” he added.
The Royals spinner stated that he was relishing the way he was bowling and was looking forward to fooling batters with his flighted deliveries significantly more.
“I’m simply enjoying my bowling and not giving it too much consideration. I must be prepared to bowl at various lengths, velocities, and trajectories, as I bowl in various phases of the game. So, I believe that what I’ve realised is that even Sanjay (Manjrekar) asked me, ‘Are you keeping it much simpler?’ I believe that simplicity is only achieved after a certain level of mastery has been attained. I believe I evaluate the situation and provide what I believe to be the finest solution. So, for the time being, I’m simply relishing my bowling and focusing on deceiving the batsman more with flight. This is because of my current bowling position,” Ashwin explained.
Ashwin said of his bowling performance on Wednesday, particularly his dismissal of Shivam Dube, “He (Dube) is CSK’s designated spin hitter. As a result of how he played Kuldeep (Sen) in the previous over, I anticipated that he would target me. Ashwin dispatched Dube for eight runs before the powerful batsman had a chance to settle in.”
“Didn’t have any premeditated plans, but I feel the ball is coming out really well, I’m able to get it to drop, I’m able to put enough revs, I’m able to use both of my variations, and both my length and arm ball are really strong at the moment. I’m simply pleased with how it’s turning out,” he added.
Ashwin, who was pushed up the order after Royals lost a couple of wickets early on, stated that the surface was turning and that they had to bide their time as the scoring rate slowed and the team reached 175 for 8 in 20 overs.
“When he (Jadeja) was bowling, I felt like I was participating in a Test match. It was just a few projectiles flying around; we will encounter similar situations when visiting different teams’ home grounds. I felt it was ideal for a left-handed spinner to hit that spot with decent side spin and speed. Jadeja was unmanageable for 2-3 overs, as the ball occasionally spun from outside leg stump. We had to bide our time and select our opponents with care,” Ashwin added.