Adelaide:Ā India spinner R Ashwin refused to compare himself with his Australian counterpart Nathan Lyon saying that the two are different bowlers and have achieved success in their own ways.
While Lyon has 391 wickets, Ashwin is close behind with 369 scalps.
Look I think every spinner is different, sometimes things can get blown out of proportion… even in this particular Test, Nathan and I we have both bowled very differently. We are different bowlers and successful in our ways, said the bowler who took four for 55 to help India claw back into the Test and take a 53-run lead.
While Lyon is the conventional type, Ashwin tries to mix things up.
‘For me… it is not so much about the trajectory. It is about trying and changing it up and making it difficult for the batsman to defend and score at the same time.’
The India bowler said that his job overseas is to hold one end up and give support to pace bowlers.
‘Sometimes when you are bowling with four bowlers, especially abroad, my job is to hold one end up and rotate the fast bowlers at the other end and also go for wickets if I get enough assistance or we have early wickets. For me, it becomes important to keep making things difficult for the batsman to defend and score as possible,’ he said.
Ashwin got the prized wicket of Steve Smith in the second session for just one as India wrested initiative early.
Aussie skipper Tim Paine scored an unbeaten 73 to take the fight to the Indians while Marnus Labuschagne made 47 as the hosts were reduced to 111 for seven at one point in time.
Earlier at the end of second session, Australia were placed in a precarious situation at 92/5 and trailed by 152 runs.
Australia’s condition could have been much worse had the Indian fielders not dropped Marnus Labuschagne twice — one by Jasprit Bumrah in the morning session while other by Prithvi Shaw in the second session.