The Mirpur Test looked lost. On a tricky pitch, where the ball was often staying low and behaving mean, India had lost seven wickets for 74. The big boys were back in the hut. The target, 145, looked depressingly distant; improbable, if not impossible. That's when Ravichandran Ashwin joined Shreyas Iyer in the middle. They were the last batters standing. Only tailenders Umesh Yadav and Mohd Siraj remained as insurance.
Ashwin, a 36-year-old all-rounder from Chennai, has scored five centuries in an illustrious 88 Test career. But his masterpieces in batting are not tons, or even half-centuries. Like the unbeaten 42 he produced on Sunday, they are lessons in how to deal with exacting situations that life sometimes throws at you, occasions when an individual's temperament and mettle are truly tested. On Christmas morning in tandem with the equally equanimous Iyer (29 n.o), Ashwin fashioned an unbroken 71 run partnership to deliver a nerve-jangling three-wicket win for India. He was again Team India's hero and saviour abroad. And his off-breaks had once more taken a backseat.
