Ashwin can hurt Australia, writes Ian Chappell

India spinner R Ashwin celebrates the wicket of New Zealands James Neesham during the third Test at the Holkar Cricket Stadium in Indore on Monday PicAFPThe demolition job that Ravichandran Ashwin did on New Zealand during the third Test means that the Australian affliction mdash a distaste for offspin bowling mdash has now spread to become an Antipodean curseAshwin has already caused Australia huge problems in India mdash not quite as devastating as his Indore performance mdash but troublesome nevertheless Actually it was in Australia that Ashwin learned a very good lesson about bowling His first attempt was peppered with multiple variations resulting in his line and length suffering which in turn provided easy pickings for the batsmenHis second attempt was only marginally more successful in the scorebook but the execution was a big improvement He concentrated on spinning his offbreak and relied more on subtle variations of pace rather than trying to turn the ball both ways This provided more control and the batsmen were made to work harder for their runsThis led to a much better performance against Australia when they toured India in 201213 Ashwin became a more confident bowler exuding an aura that all good spinners possess When added to his prowess with the bat mdash a solid middleorder run getter mdash he was on the road to the destination hes now reached a regular Indian match winner The trouble that Ashwin caused Australia in India was reminiscent of the mayhem that a number of other talented offspinners achievedBack in 1956My first memory of Australian ineptitude against offspin was a vivid one Jim Laker taking 19 wickets in the 1956 Old Trafford Test I was verging on teenager status and was devastated to see a picture of my idol Keith Miller tumbling head first out of his crease as he was beaten in flight by LakerBefore collecting all 10 wickets in the second innings at Old Trafford Laker had already achieved this rare distinction in Australias tour match against Surrey Such was the turmoil in the Australian camp that when skipper and offspinner Ian Johnson attempted to rally his troops with an anything he can do I can do speech his vicecaptain Miller is reported to have raised his gaze from a form guide and responded SixtoFour you cantAnother offspinner to weave a spell over Australian batsmen was the Indian magician Erapalli Prasanna In 196768 he took 25 wickets in only four Tests in Australia and then bettered it by one in five Tests in the return series in 196970 His performance in Australia has to be one of the outstanding achievements by a finger spinner in a country renowned for pitches that are much more responsive to wristspinnersThe Turbanator strikesThen there was Harbhajan Singhs tornado like destruction in the 200001 series in India Just when it appeared that Australia would win their first series in India since the 196970 tour and complete their seventeenth successive Test victory the Turbanator struck With six second innings wickets at Kolkata he turned what looked to be an Australian cruise to victory into a crash of headon proportionsNot satisfied with that performance he turned in a similarly destructive one in Chennai and finished the three Test series with an incredible 32 wickets No wonder crowds began chanting Singh is KingDominant performanceAshwin has already inflicted much pain on Australia as did Laker Prasanna and Harbhajan before him Consequently his dominant performance in the series against New Zealand will send chills through Steve Smiths squad Ashwins 27 wickets at 1777 and manoftheseries award against New Zealand could be viewed as a prelude to the main performanceIn a few months time Ashwin will face an Australian lineup traumatised by the portly leftarm Sri Lankan finger spinner Rangana Herath As Ashwins spin bowling partner leftarmer Ravindra Jadeja will be buoyed by Heraths success Not only does this not augur well for Australias batsmen with their distaste for spin bowling it will also revive memories of 1956 and the destruction caused by Laker and his partner mdash the leftarm orthodox spinner Tony Lock