India were poor to say the least in the first match of the series against South Africa, where they embarrassingly failed to chase down a target of 124. Former players slammed the current batters' ability to play spin, and rightly so. Meanwhile, former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin stated that batters from the previous generations had better techniques than the current lot.
The spinner pointed out that to win in the subcontinent conditions, teams must handle spin far more effectively. He also recalled a similar situation last year, when India succumbed to a 3-0 whitewash at the hands of the touring New Zealand side, largely due to the spin threat posed by Mitchell Santner and Ajaz Patel.
Ashwin noted that other teams are now better equipped to handle spin than the hosts, largely because they practise extensively for such conditions. The Chennai-born further pointed out that while India prepares thoroughly for pace when touring overseas, there is a clear lack of focused spin practice among Indian batters for home conditions.