Ashwin Rising

India had been waiting for a reliable all-rounder for a long time and Ravichandran Ashwin has now shown that he is not only a match-winner with the ball but can be a GAME-CHANGER with the bat as well.

The cricket season in the southern hemisphere has begun in real earnest, and with England also touring the sub-continent later this month, all the 10 full members of the International Cricket Council will be playing against each other at some venue or the other over the next few months.

India are playing New Zealand in a three-Test series followed by one-day internationals. This gives India the chance to regain the No. 1 ranking that they briefly held during the tour of the West Indies before they were pipped by Pakistan, who scored a fine win over England in the final Test played at The Oval.

The Oval is a venue where the teams from the sub-continent have flourished when compared with other grounds in England. That is mainly because, by the time the Test is played there the weather in England warms up considerably and the pitch at The Oval offers true bounce where the batsman can play through the line without worrying too much about deviation in the warm air.