Ravi Shastri's pep talk in Australia was where it took off: R Ashwin

GALLE: A good four years into his international career, Ravichandran Ashwin must surely have wondered at some stage what his record would have looked like if he were a little more productive away from home. Historically, all Indian spinners have struggled on foreign soil -even the great Anil Kumble did.
If Ashwin has a few more dream days like he did here on Wednesday morning, that 'away' average of 42.82 will drop to respectable limits.
There are very few spinners who have bowled with so much authority and control on the opening day of a Test match as Ashwin did on Wednesday. In fact, he now has the best figures (6/46) for an Indian on Day One, bettering Bhagwat Chandrasekhar's 39-year-old record.
"I am not looking too much into what is foreign and what is local performance. I tried to put an end to that kind of feeling. I want to move ahead and do better for the team. It's an extraordinary performance to bowl out a team in a day, especially in Sri Lankan conditions after having lost the toss," Ashwin said after the opening day's play.
The Tamil Nadu offspinner has been India's leading slow bowler in the last four years but was dropped for the first Test in Adelaide last year when India chose to play Karn Sharma in his place. He credits team director Ravi Shastri for not letting his morale sag.
"Ravi Shastri is a very positive influence on the team. When I was not playing in Australia he came to me and told me why I was not playing. He gave me a bit of sympathy as well. It is not generally something I look for. He tried to talk to me about things he experienced when he was in Australia. That's where it took off. I am someone who likes talking cricket and discussing cricket," the 28-year-old said.
Ashwin's bowling action also is markedly different since the first time he played for India. That short pause before the delivery is gone and the action seems a lot smoother and natural.
"I have gone through changes with my action quite a bit and if I am convinced with something I go ahead and try it. Not always do I expect everybody to accept that. I changed my action during the IPL and then for a couple of years in one-day cricket. Having done that I have a lot of experience to draw from to decide which action would suit me best.
"I spoke to Shastri and Bharat Arun (bowling coach), who gave me confident answers. From then on, I wanted to take it forward and improve it every single day," he added.
The Chennai star however admitted that it's going to get tougher as the game progresses. "I thought the wicket was really tacky in the morning and it was just deviating enough. There was not much of fizz and bounce in the wicket. I think as the game goes on, it is going to get really slow. You will have to work harder to get wickets," he said.
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