The off-spinner has been a tactical omission in the series thus far but would bolster the tourists’ bowling and their batting
Anyone who spent the winter lockdown tracking England’s progressive stagger around
India will remember the off‑spinner Ravichandran Ashwin wiping out batting lineups with the ease of a lazy swipe of the monopoly board.
A world-class bowler, the fastest to 300 Test wickets, he has, for tactical reasons, been carrying the drinks around
England so far this summer. Following India’s thrashing by an innings at Headingley, though, the clamour has been growing for him to play in the fourth Test starting on Thursday in south
London. It wouldn’t be his first foray to the Oval this year. He cut quite a dash in his short spell at Surrey in July, when he was signed to replace the injured
New Zealand fast bowler Kyle Jamieson when Surrey still had a shot of making Division One and winning the title.