Ravichandran Ashwin named Joe Root the toughest batter he has bowled in international cricket. The former England captain has scored 437 runs in 27 innings at an average of 62.42 against the off-spinner. Ashwin, on the other hand, dismissed the 34-year-old seven times in the longest format of the game.
In ODIs, the Chennai-born had the upper hand. In nine innings, Root scored only 97 runs at a strike rate of 72.38, while losing his wicket on two occasions. They faced once in T20Is, where Ashwin conceded only four runs in five deliveries. Meanwhile, talking about Root, the 38-year-old mentioned that the England talisman struggled against left-arm spin and he dismissed him on a few occasions but nevertheless, called him a fine player of spin.
“Joe Root is a fine batter, I really rate him against spin. I think he had a problem against left-arm spin, but I think I found ways to dismiss him much later in his career. Got really smooth footwork and lovely hands,” Ashwin told in AWS AI Conclave 2025 in Bengaluru.
The star spinner also noted MS Dhoni and Steve Smith’s contribution as captain. When asked about the best captain in the world, Ashwin stated that Dhoni knows the art of bringing out the best in a player while he believes Smith to be the ‘tactically most astute person’.
“If it was about handling the side and getting the best from a player, it’s MS Dhoni. But, I think tactically most astute person reading the passage of the play is Steve Smith,” Ashwin added.
The cricketer also named Ravindra Jadeja to be his favourite bowling partner. They have represented the national team for over a decade and will once again partner up for Chennai Super Kings in the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League.
“Ravindra Jadeja. He doesn’t think too much about dismissing batters, he keeps going about his business. He gave me the luxury to be able to be more creative,” the spinner mentioned.