Ashwin is trying something different because leg-spinners have been effective, says Laxman Sivaramakrishnan

Ravichandran Ashwin has been out of the Indian side for quite some time now. The Indian spinner missed the South Africa tour and was overlooked for the squad that was sent for the Nidahas Trophy last month. The IPL might be one of the last few chances the spinner gets to prove his worth to the BCCI selectors for a place in the national team ahead of the 2019 ICC World Cup. However, Sivaramakrishnan opined that Ashwin will be successful as he is practicing leg-spin in the nets ahead of the IPL 2018. 

"Ashwin is trying something different because leg-spinners (Chahal and Kuldeep) have been effective for India. There is no harm in trying. Hopefully, Ashwin will be successful... It won't only be good for him or his franchise but also for Indian cricket," the 52-year-old said in an interview to Cricbuzz.

"He has been bowling a lot of leg-breaks of late. But Ashwin should look at leg spin as a variation. He cannot become a leg-spinner, simply because of his action and the habits he has developed over the years. His natural ability is to bowl off spin. If he has to bowl genuine leg breaks, his whole action has to be remodeled. He is an open-chested bowler and it is difficult as a leg-spinner. The basics itself will have to change."

The emergence of the likes of Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, and Washington Sundar meant that Ashwin was no longer a guaranteed starter for the Indian cricket team. Ashwin’s former team - Chennai Super Kings have major variety in the spin department and the expectations from the quartet of Harbhajan Singh, Ravindra Jadeja, Imran Tahir and Karn Sharma will be massive.

"I see Bhajji and Jadeja as certainties in the side. Tahir and Karn, meanwhile, will have more of a part to play in the latter half of the season when the pitches have wear and tear," added Siva.