If Ashwin was English, then they would have told him to retire: Monty Panesar

Former England spinner Monty Panesar claimed that Ravichandran Ashwin would probably be urged to retire if he were an English cricket player in the current game.

Despite Ashwin's impeccable red-ball record, Panesar asserted that he won't fit into England's current Test Cricket set-up.

Ashwin starred with his all-round performance in Chennai to help India take a 1-0 lead against Bangladesh in the two-match Test series.

Following his impressive hundred on the first day of the Test that rescued India from a dire 144-6 in the first innings, Ashwin picked up a six-wicket haul on the fourth day to spin his side a mammoth 280-run win against Bangladesh.

Ashwin's 6-88 in the fourth innings meant that he touched the 750 international wickets mark, becoming only the fourth spinner to achieve this feat after Muttiah Muralidaran, Shane Warne, and Anil Kumble. During his spell, the off-spinner climbed to the eighth spot of the all-time leading Test wicket-takers, going past Courtney Walsh's 519. Ashwin now has 522 Test wickets to his name.

This was also Ashwin's 37th Test five-wicket haul in an innings, taking him second on that list alongside Warne (37) and behind Muralidaran (67).
Ravichandran Ashwin has, time and again, proved himself to be one of the most valuable players in India's red-ball setup but still Panesar claimed that England's need for experimentation won't open up space for the 38-year-old in the Three Lions set-up.

"They experiment more. If Ashwin was English right now, then they would have told him to retire because they want to bring youngsters who have the potential to play. But I think England experiments more, and they like to experiment," Panesar told IANS.

The Indian star is the second-highest wicket-taker in Tests among active cricketers—522, just behind Nathan Lyon (530), his biggest rival for more than a decade now.

Panesar believes Lyon is a better bowler than Ashwin because of the dominance he has imposed in Australia, where spinners struggle to find assistance from the pitch. However, considering Ashwin's prowess in Asian conditions, Monty labelled the 38-year-old as a better bowler on India's surface.

"I think I see Nathan Lyon in my opinion. Yes, he is a better bowler. But I think Ashwin is a better bowler in India. I think he thinks like a batter when he bowls. He is able to pick out the weakness and he can exploit it, and that is his biggest advantage. He bats really well when he bowls; he knows what the batters are thinking," Panesar added.