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Ganguly, Harbhajan, Ponting Stand In Support of Ashwin; Call Out Rohit Sharma's Blunder in WTC Final

image-lim24gb8Ashwin has been left out of India's playing XI (Twitter)

In a decision that sent shockwaves through the cricketing world, Team India made a bold move by excluding the number one ranked Test bowler, Ravichandran Ashwin, from their playing XI for the thrilling World Test Championship (WTC) Final against Australia at The Oval.

Instead, India opted to strengthen their pace attack by including Shardul Thakur and Umesh Yadav alongside Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, and Ravindra Jadeja - the sole spinner role in India's XI.

Despite Ashwin's impressive track record against Australia’s most reliable batters - Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne - in recent series, as well as Australia's lineup boasting four left-handed batters in the top seven, the veteran off-spinner was left out of the playing XI. 

At the toss, India's captain Rohit Sharma justified the decision by stating that Shardul Thakur was chosen as the fourth seam-bowling option due to the overcast and pace-friendly conditions prevailing at The Oval. However, Rohit acknowledged the difficulty in omitting a seasoned match-winner like Ashwin from the side.

The digital landscape reverberates with passionate fan reactions as social media platforms become a canvas for their emotions. Meanwhile, esteemed cricket pundits like Ricky Ponting, Harbhajan Singh, and Sourav Ganguly lend their expertise, adding further depth to the discussions surrounding Ashwin's surprising omission.

"India have made a mistake by not going with R Ashwin. They are only thinking about the first innings. (Ravichandran) Ashwin would have troubled the left-handers more than Ravindra Jadeja," Ponting said on-air on Star Sports.

"I am not exactly surprised looking at these conditions. Either you play R Ashwin or Ravindra Jadeja. Unfortunately, R Ashwin misses out in this team. Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Cheteshwar Pujara and the top five and six look very very good," Harbhajan told Star Sports.

"If you ask me, if I was captaining, every captain is different. Rohit is different, I think differently. I would find it very, very hard to keep a spinner of Ashwin's quality out of the first XI," Ganguly said while speaking to Star Sports.

The exclusion of Ashwin has sparked intense debates among fans and cricket enthusiasts, with opinions divided on whether it was the right move for India in the crucial WTC Final clash. Only time will tell how this bold decision will shape the outcome of the match.