Ravichandran Ashwin and the Art of Bowling in Australia

Ravichandran Ashwin has nine wickets from four matches in World Cup 2015 so far.© Getty Images

The Indian pacers were making the ball talk, the West Indians had no reply. Jonathan Carter was an exception, intent on making a statement. His square cut off Mohit Sharma, with the score on 44/4, left the sixteen thousand screaming Indian fans at the WACA speechless. A West Indian counter-attack was on the cards.

In came R Ashwin, got one ball to pitch on leg and turn. Carter went for a sweep, only to top edge the ball that landed safely in the hands of deep fine-leg. The extra bounce had done him in. A Caribbean revival was nipped in the bud.

Aswhin has been India's wrecker-in-chief this World Cup. 9 wickets in 4 games makes him India's highest wicket taker in the tournament, sixth highest overall. Stark contrast from the bowler that toured Australia three years ago.

In 2012, the Indian off-spinner played 7 ODIs in Australia and ended up with 7 wickets at an average of 43.42. In the five games this year (four in the World Cup and one in the tri-series) he boasts of an bowling average of 19.

So what's sparked this turn around?

According to former Australian off-spinner Bruce Yardley, Ashwin has learnt the art of bowling on Australian pitches.

"He's learnt you have to be a different in Australia than you are in India. In India you tend to go sideways with your fingers while spinning the ball, and you get away with it there. But here, in Australia, it is too flat. So, you have to get the ball rotating forward at about 45 degrees."

Voted International cricketer of the year in 1982, Yardley illustrates with a ball in his hand, "Basically you have to get enough revolutions on the ball going forward. That is done by running the fingers over the seam and not running them sideways like you do in India. The over-spin on the ball also allows the ball to drop and bounce sharply. Ashwin seems to have understood this."

Yardley would know a thing or two about off-spinners running their fingers over the seam rather than across it, having worked with Muttiah Muralitharan- the most famous exponent of this art- during his time as Sri Lanka's national coach in the late 90s.  

Ashwin too agrees to having made a few changes to his bowling ahead of the World Cup. Speaking to BCCI's official website he said, "My preparation towards my game has changed a lot. It is my wrist position, the way the ball is coming out of my hand and how much of revolutions I am getting on my deliveries. I am someone who always puts a lot of revolutions on the ball."

But that isn't the only reason behind Ashwin's success down under. The off-spinner adds, "It is also about how well I am finishing and how strong I am at the crease. There has been a lot of work that has gone into it and my trainer has been really helpful when it comes to trying to stabilise my core"

As R Ashwin continues to work on strengthening his core, it is pretty evident from his performances that he remains the core strength of India's bowling this World Cup.