“Test matches are not won by…” - Ravi Ashwin gives a piece of advice to Gautam Gambhir ahead of fifth Test vs England

Former Indian off-spinner and analyst Ravi Ashwin has suggested that the Indian think tank team, Gautam Gambhir, Morne Morkel, and Shubman Gill, include an extra specialist bowler to their playing XI for the fifth Test.

With England already leading the five-match Test series 2-1, Ashwin feels that Test matches are not won by the batting depth, but they are drawn. However, he felt that India can maximize its winning chances by having more specialist bowlers.

"Improve now, and please make that call. You can still lose after that decision, but make that decision because Test matches are not won by batting depth; they are drawn by batting depth. Test matches are won by having bowlers who have the knack for taking wickets," Ashwin told on his YouTube channel.

Furthermore, Ashwin also heaped praise on the newly appointed Test captain Shubman Gill, who managed to shut down all his critics with yet another exceptional century on the fifth and final day of the Manchester Test.

"What a fabulous hundred by Shubman Gill. He has once again proved, he worked on his technique. He did not have a great match as captain, the way he brought Washington Sundar late was a huge tactical mistake, but that happens. He is a young captain and will only learn by making mistakes, and I hope he learns faster," he said.

"Gill kept all things aside and came out as a batter and played a leader's knock. It was truly a leader's emergence knock. He scored in Birmingham, got a big score when India were 0-1. He scored at Headingley as well. We lost at Lord's and a lot of people had raised questions about his batting. When everything was down, he walked out to the middle, complete control, and batted beautifully. Yes, he got a couple of reprieves, but I thought he was fabulous," he added.

Notably, Gill continues to lead the run-scoring charts in the five-match Test series, amassing 722 runs from eight innings at an average of 90.25 with four centuries.

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