Former India off-spinner R Ashwin has slammed captain Shubman Gill and coach Gautam Gambhir for a “lack of game awareness” in the ongoing Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy.Bad light and subsequent rain forced stumps to be called early on Day 4 of the fifth Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy Test at The Oval on Sunday. With the stage set for a thrilling Day 5, England need just 35 more runs to win, while India require four wickets for a miraculous victory.“Coming back to the topic of spinners not being used, I have felt in this series that there has been a lack of game awareness and, in many ways, our tactical acumen — both on and off the field. This is the main reason why England are ahead in this series and India are behind. We haven’t been the sharpest,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel Ash Ki Baat.“I feel Shubman Gill will get much better as a captain. He will learn. But sometimes, if you feel that you can play spin really well, you might not bring spinners into the attack. And when you miss the right moment to introduce spinners in these conditions, they become a defensive option,” he added.
Rain forcing the match into the fifth day means every Test of the riveting five-match series has now gone into the final day. England looked all set to complete the chase of 374 on Day 4, thanks to Joe Root hitting his 39th Test century — 105 off 152 balls — paying a fitting tribute to Graham Thorpe.His fellow Yorkshireman Harry Brook struck a stunning 111 off 98 balls — his tenth century in the longer format — and made the most of a crucial reprieve on 19, dropped by Mohammed Siraj. Root and Brook shared a brilliant counter-attacking stand of 195 runs, giving England real hope of completing their second-highest run chase of all time — and the highest ever at The Oval.
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“When Harry Brook started taking it on, after 20 runs, you could have brought on the spinner to choke the run flow. From the other end, a pacer could have bowled. With all this in mind, Washington Sundar could have been introduced earlier into the attack,” Ashwin said.“Making these mistakes creates a huge gap. We don’t know whether the message is going from outside to the middle. We don’t know what’s being discussed in the dressing room. But in today’s day and age, these mistakes can definitely be avoided,” he added.