AGENCIES
NORTH SOUND
R Ashwin, who scored his third Test hundred during the Antigua Test against West Indies, has revealed that he learned he would be batting at number six on the first morning of the match.
"I've always wanted to bat in the top seven for the Indian team, which is a long-time goal that I have to try to strive to get better at," he said at the end of the day's play. "I need to thank Anil (Kumble) bhai and Virat (Kohli) for having the confidence in me to be pushed at number six. There have been times in the past when I've played really well, and haven't really got the promotion.
"This really says a whole lot of things about me. Virat called me in the morning and said 'you'll be batting at six, ahead of (Wriddhiman) Saha,' which is a big boost to my batting confidence. I had worked on it over the past one month in Chennai with my coach and I'm very, very happy with the way it's come out."
Ashwin came into the Test with a batting strike-rate of 59.42. Here, coming in at 236 for 4 late on the first evening, the situation required him to show a more patient side of his game. "I've never left so many balls," he said. "Ajinkya (Rahane) told before the Test match about batting 200 balls, my aim was to bat 150 balls and try and see where I get.
"In between, I played an over from (Shannon) Gabriel which was a bit loose, and Virat came up to me and said that is what you need to avoid in Test cricket to be more successful. I really thought I left really well and knew where my off stump was. It was about batting time more than runs for me this time."
