When Ravichandran Ashwin is not making life difficult for batters on the field, he is busy sharpening his mind game with chess. India batter Suryakumar Yadav posted a photo of the veteran spinner playing chess on his phone during a break from the team’s practice session in Australia’s Perth. In the photo taken from behind, Ashwin can be seen engrossed in playing chess on his phone. “Master utilising free time,” Yadav wrote in the photo captured during Team India’s practice session in Perth. While Ashwin’s face is not visible in the photo, his fans can surely identify their favourite spinner. The photo was later shared by Ashwin’s IPL team, Rajasthan Royals on Twitter with the caption, “Guess Who?”
Guess who? 👇😁 pic.twitter.com/zYfCNhEYzi
— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) October 12, 2022
However, this is not the first time that Ashwin has been spotted playing chess at the most unlikely places. During the IPL this year, the veteran spinner was seen playing chess in the air on a flight with his Rajasthan Royals teammates.
Ashwin is not the only chess master in the Indian team. Leg spinner Yuzvendra Chahal is also fond of the board game and has represented India in chess.
Meanwhile, India is set to start off their T20 World campaign with a clash against arch-rivals Pakistan at Melbourne on October 23. The team has already arrived in Australia and has been sweating it out in the nets ahead of the big stake opening game. The Indian side will be eager to avenge their defeat in the last edition of the tournament and continue their dominance over the Pakistan side.
Ahead of the main encounter, India will also be playing two warm games against New Zealand and Australia.
The bowling unit will be a cause of concern for skipper Rohit Sharma after Jaspirt Bumrah’s exit from the tournament. The star pacer had to be ruled out from T20 World Cup due to a back injury. The leakage of runs has been the biggest issue for the Indian team in recent months. With the practice games, the side will look to get their bowling combinations right.
India is placed in the Group 2 of the T20 World Cup with Bangladesh, Pakistan, South Africa and two other teams, set to be finalised after the qualification phase.
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