Michael Hussey wants Ravichandran Ashwin to play ahead of Kuldeep Yadav

Swimming against the tide former Australia cricketer Mike Hussey today said India should prefer veteran offspinner Ravichandran Ashwin over Kuldeep Yadav in the upcoming Test series against England I dont know what the selectors are thinking Personally I feel Ashwin should play ahead of Kuldeep He has more than 300 Test wickets Ashwin deserves his place in the starting XI Mr Cricket as he is fondly called saidHusseys opinion is in contrary to the prevailing viewpoint of many experts who have backed the 23yearold chinaman bowlers selection in the Test squad for the fivematch series Ashwin against the lefthanders could play a big role Kuldeep has done brilliantly but I feel India should persist with Ashwin Kuldeep is young and can learn along the way Hussey who is here as a Star Sports commentator for Tamil Nadu Premier League TNPL saidAsked if India could win the Test series he said the team has a great chance India is a good team playing good cricket A lot of the players have been in England for a while that is part of the battle Getting used to the Duke balls getting used to the pitches It takes a while to get used to it he saidOne more advantage is that they are playing later in the summer The pitches generally are a bit more flatter Perhaps the spinners might come into play a bit more The weather which is currently dry and hot that might play into Indias hands as well One of the keys is scoring big runs That will put scoreboard pressure on EnglandEngland are a very good team in home conditions they understand the conditions They get a lot support from their crowds I think India have some good support as well It should be a fantastic series the Australian who was batting coach of IPL champions CSK said When asked if veterans James Anderson and Stuart Broad would have a big role in the series he responded in the positiveUnderestimate them at your own peril Yes better cricket may have been behind them but you still cant write off great players and they always come back and show their class They always pose a threat They are still fantastic competitors and will perhaps have a say in the way the series is played out he saidHussey tipped India captain Virat Kohli to do well after facing a tough time during the previous tour to the country in 2014 The experience of last tour should help Virat Kohli Its unfortunate that he couldnt play for Surrey due to an injury He will be determined to do well this time If he gets his confidence up and spends some time in the middle he will be hard to stopThe former batsman said India opener Murali Vijay has been preparing mentally for this series and expected him to do well Vijay is motivated for this series He has been preparing mentally for a long time He is working hard on his game He is willing to work things out for himself I am watching his progress He is a special guy and I like how he thinks about his game He is important at the top for India Hussey saidAsked who could be Indias key bowlers he said they would feel the absence of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah but expected the likes of Umesh Yadav and Mohammed Shami to step up I would have said Bumrah but I didnt realise he was injured Same with Bhuvneshwar testing the depth a little bit I have always been a fan of Umesh Yadav I think he is getting to a stage where is getting a better understanding of his game He did well in the IPL and can hopefully carry that form into the seriesMohammed Shami is also a very good bowler He can have an impact as well if he can stay fit I guess Ishant Sharma is there as well They are all good bowlers but they will miss the big two It is going to be hard to replace the two he added Hussey said England picking legspinner Adil Rashid for the Tests was a big gamble but backed him to do wellI guess he was not interested in playing the long form of the game at the beginning of the summer It is a bit of a gamble I guess He obviously had experience at this level before Listening to a couple of his statements he has been making recently he seems really switched on and keen to playTalking about Mahendra Singh Dhoni Hussey said the CSK skipper lives in the moment He doesnt worry about the future thats for sure He just lives in the moment playing each game as it comes and gives the best he can As a coach there is not much I need to tell him He understands his game so well I just try and observe if there is something different More often than not he likes a oneonone chat He doesnt like these team meetings He just likes to be left to his own devices and prepare his way He knows his game well and doesnt need too much coaching he addedAlso Read Stuart Broad Even Groundsmen Dont Know How Pitch Will BehaveCatch up on all the latest sports news and updates here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updatesThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Except for the change in headline the story has been provided ASIS AS AVAILABLE without 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