Sunil Gavaskar is invariably on the ball and his comment about Ashwin’s place in India’s Test team again hits the nail on the head. In his opinion, Ashwin is an under-celebrated star who should be an automatic selection in any Test starting eleven. Hard facts and cold stats support this view. Ashwin is the fastest bowler to 350 Test wickets, a remarkable feat considering 2,363 Tests have been played since 1877.

His 27 five-wicket hauls roughly translate into 27 centuries from 66 matches. Compare this to Virat’s 25 from 80. Without stretching the point further, the bottom line is this: Ashwin is to Test bowling what Steve Smith is to Test batting.

In the Indian context, Prasanna is the grand dad of off-spin bowling, a wizard who dealt in deception and deceit, the ultimate master of spin, turn, bounce and loop; treachery delivered from an action close to perfection.Compared to past masters or contemporary stalwarts, Ashwin is an upgraded option with a complex operating system.

He is an inventive, multi-dimensional threat who floats up tempting questions at batsmen. With more aces up his spinning sleeve than just four, Ashwin surprises batsmen with a variety of change up deliveries.

Besides the stock ball, he bowls legitimate deliveries that leave the right-hander, not dodgy doosras with a bent elbow. He is also an off-spinner who can bowl leg spin.In modern cricket, conventional spinners are largely unprotected, but such is Ashwin’s creative genius he holds his own.

In IPL, he operates in the power play, ready to bowl as openers mark their guard. In Tests, especially in India, he is the best spinner by a yard, the best new-ball bowler by some distance.Ashwin also happens to be the best No 9 in the world, the only bowler to merit a bat endorsement.