India captain Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid missed a trick by excluding R Ashwin from the World Test Championship (WTC) Final Playing XI against Australia. The India team management preferred four seamers rather than having two spinners in the attack and the move backfired big time. As expected, India lost the game and Ashwin’s exclusion became a talking point.
However, the India captain had explained the move on the very first day, during the toss. Sharma had said that while it was a tough call to take, leaving out Ashwin was due to the not-so-spin-friendly conditions in England. Clearly, Sharma and Dravid had misread the pitch and also ignored the fact that Ashwin was the world’s best bowler.
Now, as the latest ICC Test Rankings were released on Wednesday, the Indian team management’s underestimation of R Ashwin’s capabilities has been again highlighted. The veteran off-spinner retained his top spot in the ICC Test Rankings despite missing out on the WTC Final. R Ashwin sits right at the top in the bowler’s rankings with 860 rating points.
Australia’s domination in batters’ rankings, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli stay static
In the ICC Test batters rankings, the Australian trio of Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, and Travis Head occupy the top three spots. While Laubuschagne retained his top spot, Smith advances one step to become the World No.2 batter. Travis Head, meanwhile, jumped two places and sits proudly at the No.3 spot. Head benefitted from his 163 in the first innings of the WTC Final.
For India, nothing to cheer for in the rankings as well. Rishabh Pant continues to be India’s top-ranked batter at No.10 while captain Rohit Sharma and stalwart Virat Kohli retained their respective positions at No.12 and No.13. Meanwhile, comeback man Ajinkya Rahane made big advances and now sits at the 37th position. Cheteshwar Pujara also advanced by one place and sits in the 25th position.
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