Ashwin is an impact bowler and it's priceless to have him in the team, says Kohli

INDIA TEST SKIPPER Virat Kohli has showered praise on offie Ravichandran Ashwin and has termed him as a ‘priceless’ weapon in the team’s armory. Kohli believes that bowlers play a decisive role in winning a Test match and added that Ashwin is one of the most impactful bowlers in international cricket. 

As reported by PTI, the Delhi-lad said,

“He’s been outstanding for the Indian team. If you see all the impact players in the world, he comes in the top three-four easily. There are quite a few players making big impact for their respective sides. Especially bowlers. Bowlers are the one I feel that win you Test matches and Ashwin is one of them.”

Ashwin scored 40 runs in the first innings and picked a total of 10-wickets in the game to guide the home side to a massive 197-run win over the Kiwis. Ashwin also became the fastest Indian to scalp 200 wickets in the Test format of the game.

Kohli further elaborated on the skills of the veteran spinner and lauded his intelligence for understanding the game very well. 

“There’s no doubt that he has been bowling wonderfully well for the last couple of years. He works very hard on his game. He is a very keen thinker of the game. He understands the game very well. Very smart cricketer, very intelligent. That shows in his batting as well. He understands the situation and plays accordingly. He knows when to get runs and when to play the situation out accordingly. So it’s priceless to have a cricketer like Ashwin in your Test team.”

Kohli, who had subdued performance at the Kanpur Test, also spoke highly of the spin combination Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin for picking a total of 16-wickets. 

“I like the fact that both of them, at times when they feel like we are trying too much as a team, both of them can come back to you and say that ‘I’m trying to bowl to this one plan and let’s see how that goes. As a captain it always gives you more assurance that both these guys obviously know what they are doing and they are going to pitch the ball in the right areas. Both of them are pretty open to hearing suggestions, but when they feel like they are very convinced about what they want to do, they tell you that. And I personally like that as a captain as well.”

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