INDIA’S 2011 World Cup triumph will be remembered yet again when this edition of the ICC World Cup begins next month. The 2011 historic victory has now formed a benchmark for the team to replicate as it had come on the home turf. However, there were many sub-plots in the 2011 story apart from the dream run by Sachin Tendulkar and amazing bowling effort by Zaheer Khan. The two were definitely architects of the Indian campaign which was provided icing on the cake in the final by Gautam Gambhir’s gritty innings. One thing that revolved around the team selection in 2011 was the place of Ravichandran Ashwin in the playing XI. Twelve years later, Ashwin is still at the centre of the debate around inclusion of an off-spinner in the World Cup-bound squad. Dramatic as it may seem, Ashwin was not even in the scheme of things until a few days ago before captain Rohit Sharma pitched for the offie after India’s Asia Cup title victory. With immediate effect, Ashwin was drafted into the team for the three One-Day Internationals against Australia. Two of the games are already over and Ashwin has showed glimpses of his fighting spirit while taking on the Aussies.

 

Whether it would open the backdoor for the Tamil Nadu spinner into the World Cup squad still depends upon Axar Patel’s injury status. But going by the talk surrounding the premier offie, Ashwin is likely to get another chance to feature in the World Cup at home, twelve years after representing the country in its golden moment. Kept away from white-ball cricket for long, the sudden focus of the team management and the BCCI selectors on Ashwin is a bit perplexing. It seems a late realisation to the think-tank that an off-spinner was needed in a tournament which has plethora of left-handers in the opposition ranks. Ashwin still fits the bill despite his advancing age. However, whether the skipper and coach would be bold enough to pick him as the spin spearhead is still a question with no definite answer.

 

There is a bit of history around the skepticism around Ashwin in the current set-up of the national team. It was evident from the decisions to keep Ashwin away from some important overseas Tests despite proving his worth in home Tests. Ashwin’s exclusion was questioned by former greats, both Indian and foreign, during the World Test Championship final against Australia. And though the team management defended the call by putting forth the English conditions for an extra seamer, the blunder did come back to haunt the team in the final loss. For Ashwin, he finds himself in a familiar position, just like 12 years ago. That time he had to make his way in alongside Harbhajan Singh. He immediately made his mark with a wicket with the new ball. Going by the steel he possesses, Ashwin is set to leave his mark yet again.