Does donning the long sleeves give some spinners in world cricket an advantage or not?
That’s a question that some may feel India’s most recent man of the match, Ravi Ashwin, has put firmly on cricket’s agenda.
Ashwin has been tinkering with his bowling action in recent times, and some were critical when he resorted to wearing a long-sleeved cricket top and bowling with what some labelled a ‘Sunil Narine-like action’ in an Asia Cup match in February.
Interestingly, while not naming anyone specifically, Ashwin’s justification this weekend for bowling with his elbows covered in that match have been picked up as a news story by various media outlets.
"I wanted to do something different. Unless you try, you won't find out what can work or not. I had never bowled in full-sleeves before. So I wanted to see how it would feel. That's point number one," Ashwin said, prior to taking on Australia on Sunday night.
"And I just wanted to see if you can get more revs on the ball if you can do a little bit with your elbow, as much as that is.
“You can get a lot of advantage with these things, so why should I lag behind if someone else is getting a competitive edge?"
Spinners who bowl with long sleeves include the West Indies’ Narine and Pakistan’s Saeed Ajmal, who uses the doosra extensively (story continues below video).