ADVERTISEMENTREMOVE AD

Learnt Carrom Ball From a Guy Playing Tennis-Ball Cricket: Ashwin

The 33-year-old said he would spend every morning with this friend, learning the art of the mystery ball.

Published
Cricket
2 min read
story-hero-img
i
Aa
Aa
Small
Aa
Medium
Aa
Large
Hindi Female

Ace India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has revealed the person from whom he learnt the skills to bowl the carrom ball — a delivery through which he has bamboozled many batsmen across formats.

Ashwin said it was a person named SK who used to bowl the delivery with a proper action and extract drift, that too with a tennis ball when they used to play on the streets of Chennai.

“The first time I went to play a tennis ball game, I was batting. There was this guy who was bowling with a proper action, getting beautiful drift and getting the ball to go nicely out and in. Till today I can’t find where the guy is but I haven’t seen a better bowler who can bowl both in and out than him in my life. His name is SK. He was the one from whom I learnt that ball.”
Ravichandran Ashwin, on Cricbuzz’s show Spicy Pitch
ADVERTISEMENTREMOVE AD

The 33-year-old added that he would spend every morning with this friend, learning the art of the mystery ball, for 15 days.

"Basically he was the one who made me look like an absolute idiot on that particular day. I was a big thing around the tennis ball circuit as a batsman then, so I said I need to learn from this guy. So I used to go every morning, and he used to come and teach me for about 10-15 days," he added.

Sri Lanka’s Ajantha Mendis is touted to have introduced this delivery during his debut in 2008, earning him the tag of being a ‘mystery spinner’ for quite some time.

Ashwin, who has picked 362 wickets in 70 Tests, is part of the India squad for the two-Test series against New Zealand which gets underway in Wellington on February 21.

(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)

0

Read Latest News and Breaking News at The Quint, browse for more from sports and cricket

Speaking truth to power requires allies like you.
Become a Member
3 months
12 months
12 months
Check Member Benefits
Read More
×
×