Former leg-spinner Laxman Sivaramakrishnan launched a fresh attack on veteran India bowler Ravichandran Ashwin only a day after accusing him of directing home curators to prepare doctored pitches to suit his bowling in Test cricket.
In his latest salvo against Ravichandran Ashwin, Laxman Sivaramakrishnan pointed out a technical flaw in his bowling.
Sharing a picture of Ravichandran Ashwin in which he's on the verge of delivering a ball, Laxman Sivaramakrishnan declared that his action was incorrect.
“Do you still think that this bowling action is biomechanically correct??? That is all I am talking about,” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Previously, Laxman Sivaramakrishnan tore into Ravichandran Ashwin for his poor record in SENA (South Africa, England, New Zealand, and Australia) countries.
“Indian batsman are struggling against spin because the pitches in India are doctored for Ashwin in Test matches. Look at his record in SENA Countries,” Laxman Sivaramakrishnan said on social media.
“Any fool will get wickets on tampered pitches in India. Go straight from the airport to the ground and tell the ground staff what areas to tamper, I have seen with my own eyes several times,” former India leg-spinner added.
“378 wickets in India. He is still playing because there is nobody else. Liability fielder – 20. Most unfit cricketer. Gives excuses for everything,” Laxman Sivaramakrishnan elaborated, explaining the reasons behind his explosive rant against Ravichandran Ashwin.
It is worth mentioning that Ravichandran Ashwin only made it into the Indian cricket team after Axar Patel, initially picked for the World Cup, got injured at the last minute.
Axar Patel suffered a quadriceps injury during India's match against Bangladesh in the Asia Cup in Sri Lanka last month.
The left-arm orthodox bowler was sent to the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru to expedite his recovery but failed to get fit for the tournament.
Notably, Ravichandran Ashwin, who last played an ODI in January 2022 before being drafted into the Indian team for the recently concluded three-match series against Australia, impressed almost everyone, including the fans, selectors and former players with his performance against Pat Cummins and his boys.
In the two games he played against the Kangaroos, Ravichandran Ashwin grabbed four wickets. His figures of 3/41 in Indore, where he posed serious problems for Australian batters, appear to have convinced skipper Rohit Sharma and head coach Rahul Dravid to recall him for the World Cup.
Besides, the World Cup is being played in India, handing Ravichandran Ashwin a massive advantage in home conditions. With his wide range of variations and ability to impart turn on his stock balls, he could be lethal on slow and dry Indian pitches.
Yet Laxman Sivaramakrishnan wasn't convinced about Ravichandran Ashwin becoming a part of India's World Cup squad.
Instead, he blamed the Indian curators for preparing undercooked pitches in India to assist the Tamil Nadu-born spinner during Test matches at home, which he opined was the prime reason behind his success in red-ball cricket.
For the unversed, Ravichandran Ashwin is only the second cricketer who was also a part of India's previous World Cup triumph in 2011, the other being talismanic batter Virat Kohli.
Like Laxman Sivaramakrishnan, all-rounder Yuvraj Singh was unhappy with the move of the national selectors as he wanted either Yuzvendra Chahal or Washington Sundar to replace Axar Patel and not Ravichandran Ashwin.
“I personally feel the only miss in this side is Yuzvendra Chahal. I think the only aspect that is missing from this team is a leg-spinner,” Yuvraj Singh said at a public event in Delhi.
“I was very keen to see Washington Sundar in the side if we are not picking up Yuzi. But maybe the team wanted an experienced bowler, so that is why I think they went with R Ashwin,” he mentioned.
Rohit Sharma and his boys will open their campaign in the tournament with a mouth-watering clash against five-time champions Australia in Chennai on October 8.
Meanwhile, Ravichandran Ashwin confessed that this could be his last World Cup.
“I would be saying you are joking. Life is full of surprises and I honestly wasn't thinking I would be here. The trust that the team management has shown and circumstances have made sure I am here today. But enjoying the game has been my prime motive over the last few years and that is what I will be doing in this tournament,” Ravichandran Ashwin said on Star Sports.
“All I do is turn the ball both ways and I feel I can already do that. It is all about doing subtle variations and dealing with pressure in these sort of tournaments. Pressure is of paramount importance for most players in these tournament, but how you deal with it dictate how the tournament goes for yourself and the team. As far as I am concerned, being in a good space and enjoying the game will hold me in good stead. I have kept saying this, it could well be my last World Cup for India,” he concluded.