Despite constant changes, India can always count on Ashwin as a steadfast ally.

From his stunning appearance from Bravo Trinidad in 2016 to his one at Chanderpaul on Wednesday evening, Chanderpaul demonstrated how little has changed in how he has acted.

The July 16th, 2016 Trinidad Test is notable due to the rain, a soggy field, and a few other things: 22 overs of cricket were played in the initial session of the day, with no action afterward. However, those 22 innings included a fantastic moment the ball of R Ashwin turned past Darren Bravo’s outer edge and landed on the stump.

The 17th wicket from an incredible series played by Ashwin playing bat and ball. You might not have thought the time it took him more than seven years before he would play another test match in the West Indies.

This, however, is what the career of Ashwin has traced. In the course of India’s visit to the Caribbean in the year 2019, the team sacked Ashwin for both Tests.

The morning of Wednesday, at Dominica, Ashwin took his first wicket in the West Indies since that beauty to Bravo, and it seemed that nothing had changed except for the name of the left-hander whom he had dismissed. The ball was angled into Chanderpaul’s direction from the wicket and then flipped around his edge before he clipped off his stump.

The wicket was a perfect match for all Ashwin boxes.

There was an impression that Ashwin’s prior 2.4 overs had accumulated to this point. The first ball of the day was a success through the side, and Chanderpaul could inside-edge it ahead of the short leg. 

Ashwin didn’t turn on any ball. However, he had bowled after that, and Chanderpaul may have had the perfect decision to bowl for his ball through the angle. He also posed a threat with bat pads and lbw.

Second, Ashwin tried everything he could to overstate the angle inward. Ashwin went so far beyond the stumps that his front foot fell in the return crease, which is entirely legal, but the back foot is not permitted to slice the return crease. He also caused the ball to slide into the crease even more.

It’s not much to do when a ball goes around that angle other than hoping it doesn’t hit the stumps. It’s not happening for Chanderpaul.

There was a feeling that it was as if nothing had changed in the year 2016. It was as if there was nothing new since March when Ashwin took all his skills to bear on the stale Ahmedabad field to score an impressive six-wicket haul against Australia. On the one hand, it was as if nothing had changed. In the end, it was still the same player.

In another way, however, it was confirmed that a lot was changed. There was a big difference between Ahmedabad and Dominica, India had played just one Test game, and they had been able to leave Ashwin from their team. 

The match wasn’t a regular Test but the last stage of the World Test Championship at The Oval. Ashwin was India’s top wicket-taker throughout the WTC season.

The absence meant Ashwin did not play in any of India’s six recent Test games in England. The last match he participated in was in 2021’s WTC final in Southampton, and he ended that game with figures of 25-10-45-4 and was possibly India’s most effective bowler under conditions that largely neutralized spin bowling. 

However, the reality that India fell short, and they did so because their rivals have a faster pace and a more powerful pace attack, caused them to drop the concept of using the three spinners and two seamers for English pitches. They switched to a 4-2-1 arrangement, leaving space for just one of their top two spin-bowling all-rounders.

It’s India’s most excellent fortune and Ashwin’s greatest misfortune that his life has coincided with the career of Ravindra Jadeja. When you leave the soft glow of the past to one side, picture Australia in the 1990s to early 2000s with Shane Warne out on the unusual English green top and using four seamers when they were to get Jadeja as a player and when he was at his best.

Warne’s talent would not have been criticized if such circumstances existed in his time. Australia did not have a Jadeja counterpart. However, they did have Jadeja, and English pitches at that time were known for bringing a twist to the game in the way they now have.

It’s not a knock on Ashwin’s skill to perform well. India is more likely to choose the fourth seamer, and he’s not competing directly against Jadeja, as he is a batting all-rounder on specific kinds of pitches. 

However, the possibility that two different captain-coach combinations have left Ashwin absent in several famous games has created the idea that he requires the right conditions to make an impression.

This is partially true; everyone needs aid to grab a handful of wickets. It’s also not the case since Ashwin, at the time of writing, as of the beginning of the year, has had the highest average of the spinners (minimum of 10 innings) who are playing outside of the home of Australia, England, New Zealand, and South Africa. If you take the home matches in these countries, Nathan Lyon only gets ahead.

The thing is that Jadeja’s figures are the same as Ashwin’s, and he can also bat among the upper six. Ashwin played at no. 6 on the 2016 West Indies tour, but his beneficial bat isn’t as effective at this level.

The previous Wednesday, Ashwin played superbly, just as he usually does, and he was an unstoppable threat for West Indies’ batters on the first day of play in Dominica, which, despite being slow, provided both turn and bounce. This was especially true after its initial moisture dissipated.

Each ball he bowled was a source of hard questions. A ball that went to Jason Holder in his 11th round summarized his experience. The ball was fast; however, it was not wholly loop-free, and it could hang long enough to veer off from Holder and evoke thoughts about a cover drive in his head. 

It slid down over him, causing the player to forget about his ideas and make a quick spin that was briefly suspended up in the air but not quite getting to the midwicket full. Both Ashwin and the fielder Rohit Sharma finished in the middle of their heads.

Each Ashwin ball required batters to remain at their best. The chances to score a touchdown were highly uncommon. An experienced team with more experience and proven ability might try to beat Ashwin; however, there’s no assurance that this strategy will succeed. 

The West Indies line-up tried to push Ashwin away from his lengths. However, it wasn’t successful: Kraigg Brathwaite and Alzarri Joseph slogged slogs with unintended direction, while Alick Atanaze – who had been looking composed and slack-footed when he scored 47 in his debut match – was trapped in a cramped space while attempting to pull.

As he spotted an extra bounce in the length of a leg to get Jomel Warrican snared at the shorter leg, Ashwin was able to record the 33rd time he has scored five wickets in Tests. He’s now in sixth place in the list of all-time greats and is joined by Warne (37), barely much ahead of him in second. Muthiah Muralidaran, who is his 67th birthday, may not be beaten.

In case you’re wondering, Jadeja’s a bit further behind with just 12 five-wicket hauls. The average is strikingly identical to Ashwin’s. The match on Wednesday summarized their career. Jadeja bowled fewer overs than Ashwin; however, they bowled with the same exacting control with similar pressure and inflicting similar mistakes from West Indies’ batters.

Together, they produced an ideal opening day for the tour. India could have entered with some nervousness, given that they would be without their two most efficient fast bowlers. (highlights cricket)

Ashwin had figures of 24.3-6-60-5 as well as Jadeja 14-7-26-3. India has the privilege of having both of them, an advantage that can be a burden, but the inconvenience that comes with leaving one out is an insignificant cost.