Ravichandran Ashwin has stated that India’s chase of around 150 in the third Test against New Zealand won’t be easy due to the unconventional behavior of the Wankhede Stadium pitch. The pitch is exhibiting different characteristics at each end, with lower bounce than expected, making it challenging for batters.

Ashwin, known for his analytical approach to bowling, explained that he used the carrom ball to exploit this unevenness. He observed that the pitch is flatter and has lesser bounce from the dressing room end, prompting him to try something different.

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Ashwin says the chase is not going to be easy

With an overall lead of 143, India faces a challenging target, and Ashwin emphasized the importance of batting well to achieve victory. He acknowledged that every run saved in this innings will be crucial, and wrapping up the innings quickly will be essential.

The pitch’s unpredictability has added an extra layer of complexity to the game, making it a fascinating contest between India and New Zealand.

“Hopefully not many, we should wrap it up with one or two runs here and there. Any runs saved in this innings is going to be much more critical. It’s not going to be easy, we’ll have to bat really well,” Ashwin told Dinesh Karthik in his post-match interview.

“Expected a lot more bounce. It has been quite slow which is a surprise. It’s not a typical Bombay pitch, much slower.” 

“The game itself is divided into two halves. The one from the pavilion end and from the other end, it’s slightly behaving differently. It’s slightly flatter from the one where we are bowling from the dressing room side, the bounce is much lesser. So I thought I will try and use it the other way.

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“The (NZ) batters are also knowing that it’s easier to take me on from this side. So I wanted to give something different,” he gave his reasons.

On his brilliant catch running 19 metres sideways to pouch in-from Daryl Mitchell, Ashwin said that he trusted his hands.

“For all the flak you’ve given me overs the years (to Karthik), I don’t think I’ve dropped many. I have got great hands and I trusted it. I was just telling myself that it’s going to anyway leave me, I wanted to get as close to the ball as possible,” he concluded.