Former Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin lashed out at captain Shubman Gill for “lack of game awareness” as England close in on a series victory. As it has been seen in the series before, once again the Indian captain decided to neglect the spinners in IND vs ENG 5th Test. Despite being asked to chase a record 374 runs at the Kennington Oval, the hosts now find themselves needing just 35 runs to win the game.

Ashwin unhappy with Gill’s mistakes in IND vs ENG 5th Test

In a video on his YouTube channel, Ashwin said that India had displayed lack of game awareness and tactical acumen both on and off the field in terms of using spinners. He said that this was one of the main reasons why England were ahead in the series and claimed that India haven’t been the sharpest. While Ashwin backed Gill to become better as captain in the future, he said that using spinners becomes a defensive option if the moment to bring them into the attack when the conditions are perfect is missed.

“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,” said Ashwin

Only 8 overs of spin were bowled in the 2nd innings, with Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar bowling only four each. Ashwin suggested that India could have brought Sundar into the attack to choke the flow of runs when Harry Brook was going on the aggressive. He said that making such mistakes was a huge gap, adding that it was something to be avoided.

“Making these mistakes is a huge gap. We don’t know whether the message is going from outside to the middle. We don’t know the dressing room talks. But in today’s day and age, these mistakes can definitely be avoided,” he added.