IPL 2019 | Players are reacting very well R Ashwin leadership, says Mike Hesson
Mike Hesson has stated that Kings XI Punjab players are reacting positively to R Ashwin’s leadership as the latter is letting his performance talk. Hesson has also added that Mankading Jos Buttler was an instinctive decision by the Punjab skipper and certainly not a plan by the cricketers.
Always an unassuming unit in the Indian Premier League, Kings XI Punjab have failed to win the title even once and was close to winning it in the 2014 edition before losing to Kolkata Knight Riders in the final. Ever since they appointed Ravichandran Ashwin as the skipper, the team has suddenly risen to the public consciousness thanks to the skipper’s leading-from-the-front attitude. With five wins and as many losses, the team is languishing at the bottom half of the table, but they are best positioned to pip Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad due to their scheduling. The progress made Hesson strongly believe that Ashwin has carved his own distinct niche in the team set-up.
“Ashwin is very thorough in his preparation. He certainly does a lot of work behind the scenes in terms of the game and also in terms of getting to know players. He is a hard worker. He is certainly very passionate about the team and wants the team to do well. He does the work off the field,” Hesson told The TimesofIndia.com.
“On the park, he leads by example in terms of performance and he has high expectations from everyone around him. He has done an excellent job this IPL and certainly, the players are reacting very well to his leadership. He is also developing other leaders in the group as well and that's a big part of what we are trying to do.”
Ashwin was at the centre of a lot of criticism and the opinions were divided when he used Mankading to dismiss Jos Buttler when both teams first met in this edition. While some people said it was against the spirit of cricket, Ashwin had some supporters on his side as well, who believed that there shouldn’t have been any fuss about it as it was within the laws of the game. Hesson stated that it was not a plan on Ashwin’s part rather an instinctive decision - the same sentiment which was shared by Ashwin earlier.
“It's an incident that everyone would prefer didn't happen. I think that's the first point. I think once it did, we sort of ascertained that it was certainly not a plan, it was an instinctive decision. It was done in the heat of the battle and at that point in time it was left in the umpires' hands. Certainly something that I don't think anyone wanted to happen.
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