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Is Ashwin an ATG spinner / player?

ataraxia

ataraxia

International Coach
He's an ATG.

edit: whaddya mean I'm obviously saying that he's an ATG logician, isn't there as a philosopher yet. needs a few more mankads
 
Shri

Shri

Mr. Glass
5 test hundreds compared to shaun pollock's 2

bowling average 24 vs pollock's 23

is pollock an atg? if yes, ashwin is too
 
ankitj

ankitj

Hall of Fame Member
R Ashwin said:
There are two aspects of preparation. One is physical and the other is mental and tactical. I don't think people talk enough about or lay enough emphasis on the tactical stuff.
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Genius
 
Shri

Shri

Mr. Glass
ankitj said:

OK, this interview has some great insights into how Ashwin went about his business in BG trophy. Intelligent bowler to be fair.
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Ashwin's injury list:

www.mayoclinic.org

Patellar tendinitis, also known as jumper's knee-Patellar tendinitis - Symptoms & causes - Mayo Clinic

Jumper's knee — a common knee injury — affects the tendon that stretches from the kneecap (patella) to the shinbone.
www.mayoclinic.org www.mayoclinic.org

Pubalgia

Original Editors - Nick Kafkot
www.physio-pedia.com www.physio-pedia.com


When it comes to physical preparation, between 2017 and 2019, I first got struck by this injury called patellar tendonitis. It is not like you can't play with it, but the beauty of the injury is that your knees just won't warm up. In the morning, even walking can be excruciatingly painful. They open up as the day pans out, but you can't jog. It takes at least two or three laps before it feels okay. The pain never really goes off.


It happened on my right leg first, which is my take-off leg when bowling. So jumping becomes extremely difficult. You need to have a bit of a jump, you have to go on one leg at least for a fraction of a second before you deliver the ball. So it became very challenging. Even my practice had started to become a bit of a challenge. And eventually the left leg got affected too, because of the extra load it had to carry.


Then I had athletic pubalgia, which I think came on as an extension of the first injury. Every other part of the body had to make up for what the knee wasn't able to produce.


Then I started to bowl with different actions. Because of athletic pubalgia, getting into a side-on position every time would be tough. Then after about ten overs into a spell, all of a sudden there would be no energy going through the body. Then I tore my abdomen, then I tore my adductors. It was like dominos.


These injuries left a lot of scars on me. In the cricketing community [in India], the understanding towards injuries is pathetic. Clearly there is a reason why I was getting injured, but we are not interested in finding that out. We just keep repeating that the problem is a problem, but that does not help me find a solution. Nor will shaming someone for getting injured.


A lot of team-mates get injured, but when I got injured, it seemed more than what it was. There was insensitivity towards injury. It scarred me deeply. I would go to county cricket thinking, "I should just get through the day." That I should bowl 25 overs without injuring myself. Because if I injure myself in county cricket, I would end up raising eyebrows.


One thing that will forever hurt me is that statements were made about how I didn't want to play or how I ran away from a contest. You can brand me anything, you can kick me out, all that is fine, but to doubt my intent or my fight is something that deeply hurt me.


Before getting into any series, I go into a four-week training. In the morning I focus entirely on my mobility and my injury-struck areas. Sling sort of work, fascia sort of work. I get into holding positions. Then two hours later, after breakfast, I go into strength training where I build my big-bang muscles. In the evening, alternate days I run, alternate days, I do skill.


Due to these injuries I have got into front-on positions, side-on positions, slingy positions and all that. I have all that in my head. So I get into all these positions to check how my body is responding. For example, if I bowl legbreaks, my shoulder will start hurting from one side of the scapula because it has been overused by the other side. I will get into all these positions so that I feel the pain and then I address the pain.


Ideal preparation time is six weeks. If you have six weeks, you can get through a four-five Test series just through maintenance. Last two years I have been making sure I get into every series at a certain weight and maintain it.
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**** i really want him to go past kumble's record in tests but it seems like every day of test cricket that we get out of ashwin is a gift :(

Between 2018 and 2020, I contemplated giving up the sport at various points. I thought, "I have put in a lot of effort, but it is not coming through." The harder I tried, the farther it felt. Especially with athletic pubalgia and the patellar tendonitis - I used to bowl six balls and then I used to be gasping for breath. And there would be pain all over the place. So you needed to make adjustments. When the knee pain got excruciating, the next ball I would probably jump less. When I jumped less, obviously the force needs to be produced through the core and the back and the shoulders, so the pubalgia would act up. So the third ball I would be extra side-on to try to use the hips. By the time I was done with six balls, I would be like, "I need a break here."
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Shri

Shri

Mr. Glass
Then when you go into Australia, Steve Smith, what are your plans?
I made him my obsession for about six months, not just two weeks or three weeks. Just footage, just watching different matches. The most recent series they played [before India toured Australia in 2020-21] was New Zealand. I went through every single day's play. I would go on to my app and check - how many runs was [Marnus] Labuschagne batting on when Will Somerville came on to bowl? Which ball did he hit over cow corner?


I think there is a bit of premeditation when it comes to Aussie batsmen. I think in this whole "playing the Aussie way", they are looking for aggressive options. Obviously, Aussie pitches are very true. So you can get away without getting to the pitch of the ball sometimes, which can be very disconcerting [for the bowler]. As a spinner, you need to be very precise in Australia. Every run you give must be on your own terms.


So whenever Marnus Labuschagne steps out, he hits the ball over cow corner for an offspinner, or he hits it over mid-off. It's very rarely through long-on. And he doesn't have a flat sweep, he has a lap sweep, like a paddle. All these shots have a trigger. And it's very fine. If you don't know or if you've not seen enough footage, you cannot pick these things up.


And with Steve Smith, his batting is very momentum-driven. Most of his batting comes from his hands, so my whole idea was to disturb his hands through the series. He's got certain hand-movement patterns. You have to pick them and be able to bowl in a way that disturbs his hand pattern. So I bowled with different load-ups, different speeds, different run-ups and all that. I realised I kind of got to him.

...

In the case of, say, Steven Smith, he is someone who thinks. Like after the first Test [where Smith was caught on the crease and edged to slip], the second instance, he came searching for the ball on the front foot. That was a reaction to the first [dismissal]. So if you know someone who is searching for excellence, they will try and find a solution. So you can be prepared for that solution.
 
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Shri

Shri

Mr. Glass
So I managed to get footage of Smith and Labuschagne from every single nets session. Some from behind, some from side-on.


In Melbourne they even got [former Sri Lanka offspinner] Suraj Randiv to the nets, I think for similar height or high-arm [to me] or whatever. Labuschagne's entire intent was to go through the off side because he tried to step out and got beaten in the flight in Adelaide. He was going to go on the back foot and crash everything to the off side so that I changed my pace or something. In the nets he would chip and charge to just try to drive to mid-on and then just sit back and try and score through the off side.


So I was prepared for it. In fact, just when Marnus came in [in the second Test], there was a bat-pad chance, which ballooned over Puji's [Cheteshwar Pujara's] head, and then he started to play through the off side. And when he is playing through the off side, he doesn't want to come forward.


And there was good drift at MCG, so I went round the stumps. The moment you go round the stumps, Marnus has this habit of seeing the line and sitting down for a flat sweep. He doesn't sweep flat [when you're bowling] from over the stumps. He only paddles from over. When you go round, it's a compulsory hard sweep. I think he did that to Somerville. So the moment I shifted the angle, I knew he was going to sweep. These guys, when somebody goes round the stumps, they don't think they have the ability to pitch the ball on the stumps. Or maybe that's the spin they play. So I went to the corner of the crease, and then because of the breeze, I just made sure that he saw it at the left of his eyeline. And the ball drifted nicely. He went to sweep and got jammed and got hit on the pads, and he was given out, but the DRS saved him on the bounce.


And the next innings, again same. Over the stumps, give him a couple of drives to the off side, and then move round the stumps. This time he didn't want to sweep, and he had got out stepping out and trying to hit in Adelaide. So those shots are out. And now the only option available to him was going through the off side. So the moment he saw one flat, he went back and the ball drifted. It was flat and full, and he got caught. As he was going back, he was telling himself to come forward. You can check it in the footage.
 
centurymaker

centurymaker

Cricketer Of The Year
ankitj said:
Good job using hundreds instead of batting averages for the comparison
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But if you use the metric runs per match then there isn’t much difference-

Pollock 3781 runs / 108 = 35 runs per Test match
Ashwin 2755 runs / 81 = 34 runs per Test match

Their true value in terms of runs in a match is similar, as
Pollock has 39 not outs in 156 innings while
Ashwin has 14 not outs in 114 innings.

Pollock 3781 / 156 = 24 runs per innings
Ashwin 2755 / 114 = 24 runs per innings


Pollock has 16 50’s + 2 100’s = 18 scores of 50+
Ashwin has 11 50’s + 5 100’s = 16 scores of 50+

Pollock 156 innings / 18 = every 8.7 innings
Ashwin 114 inning / 16 = every 7.1 innings

Ashwin is scoring a 50+ score every 7th innings while Pollock is taking closer to 9 innings. Raw average isn’t everything.
 
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