IND vs ENG | Twitter reacts as 'Batman' Ashwin proves to be India's hero again with three quick blows

SportsCafe Desk

BySportsCafe Desk, SportsCafe Editor

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India's hopes in the ongoing series hinged on the prolific Ravichandran Ashwin and an underwhelming series for the spearhead landed them in trouble but cometh the hour in Ranchi, cometh the man. The veteran yet again emerged as the hero India needs and deserves with two scalps at a crucial juncture.

England wrapped up India for 307 in the opening session of Day 3 at the Jharkhand State Cricket Association Stadium to take a healthy first-innings lead of 46 despite a valiant knock of 90 by rookie Dhruv Jurel. With the pitch deteriorating at a rapid rate, the visitors stood firmly in the box seat, and openers Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley seemed on course to further extend the advantage as they built up a 19-run stand in quick time. The encounter thus slipping away, Ravichandran Ashwin took up the onus to spin his team back into contention and did so with aplomb in his opening spell of the innings.

The first blow came on the penultimate ball of the fifth over with Ben Duckett trying to press forward and defend a length delivery aimed at the stumps. However, Ashwin had imparted a phenomenal number of revolutions on the red cherry that made it zip through the air after pitching and bouncing more than the southpaw expected, thereby striking his bat handle and looping into Sarfaraz Khan's hand at short leg. Amidst ecstatic celebrations amongst the Indian camp, Ollie Pope walked in on a pair albeit with the match-winning 196 in the third innings in the first Test still fresh in the spectators' minds. Ashwin adopted a similar strategy for the 26-year-old, but landed the ball on leg stump this time that nastily squared Pope all-hands up and thumped into his pads plumb in front thereby resigning Pope to a golden duck. 

First-innings centurion Joe Root seemed to steady the ship thereafter as he ground out 34 balls for 11 runs but eventually did run into the Ashwin juggernaut in the 17th over. The 37-year-old pitched a ball full on middle-and-leg that spun in considerably after pitching to beat the attempted flick and the ensuing DRS had the SG hitting leg-stump to provoke a huge fist stump from Ashwin

All of a sudden, England suddenly snapped out of cruise mode and found themselves reeling at effectively 112/3 with Ashwin drastically bringing down his 40-plus average in the series at the start of the second innings. The three scalps also took the off-spinner to 352 scalps in India, the most for any bowler going past Anil Kumble's 350, and Twitterati was quick to laud the veteran with congratulations. 

Anna for a reason!

What a start!

That's a massive one!

Back-back!

He's on fire!

Pope just came and went!

Powerful people..

He's so good at it!

Hahaha! Yessss!

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