NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin is adding a surprise leg-break to his already formidable bag of tricks but is convinced that the controversial ‘doosra’ cannot be bowled with a straight arm. The 29-year-old is basking in the glory of a stellar year in which he won back-to-back man-of-the-series awards after spinning India to test series victories in Sri Lanka and at home against South Africa. A slow bowler with a penchant for targeting the opposition’s best batsman, his ‘carrom’ ball has outfoxed the best players of spin, including talismanic South African AB de Villiers. Ashwin wants to add more variety to his craft and sees nothing wrong in an off-spinner bowling an occasional leg-break. “I always keep trying things,” the spinner told Times of India newspaper. “I feel if a batsman can play a reverse sweep, I can also bowl leg-break. “With that thought, I have been trying the leg-break and I think I have mastered it now. But I will be sure when I unleash one in a match situation and take the top of off-stump. “The next one is probably the googly and the flipper, but I haven’t tried those,” said the spinner, whose early success in the 20-over format earned him a one-day call-up before he established himself as India’s main strike bowler in tests. Ashwin has wreaked havoc on South Asia’s spin-friendly tracks in the last six months, claiming 57 wickets in the eight tests he played at an average of 14.38. While quite a few of them came from his carrom ball, Ashwin never had to bowl a ‘doosra’ — the controversial delivery that spins the other way — which has led to suspensions of several off-spinners from the region. “Carrom ball is a proper knuckle ball and it can’t be bowled with an offspinner’s grip,” Ashwin said. “It is a finger-spinning ball and you don’t use the wrist or elbow to bowl it… it’s like a legal leg-break. But I don’t think the doosra can be bowled without bending your arm, may be the topspinner but not the doosra.” (Reporting by Amlan Chakraborty in New Delhi; Editing by John O’Brien) 

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Profile

32-year old all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin first broke into the cricket scene, courtesy IPL. Owing to impressive performances in the cash-rich league, he got the nod for the national team.

The Chennai-born spinner debuted for the Indian team's ODI and T20 sides in 2010, and Test debut a year later.

IPL Career

Ravichandran Ashwin first made his mark in IPL 2009 with the Chennai Super Kings. That year, CSK reached the semifinal stage, but lost to eventual runners-up Royal Challengers Bangalore.

However, a year later, the Super Kings proved that they were a force to be reckoned with, and Ashwin was there for it all. He went on to snag a grand total of 13 wickets in 2010.

A year later, CSK became the first team to ever defend their title. Once again, Ashwin was in the thick of action and helped guide CSK to victory.

<img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-151765" src="http://www.essentiallysports.com/wp-content/uploads/Ashwin_CSK_BCCI_0.jpg" alt="Ravichandran Ashwin" width="750" height="500" />

He remained with CSK for a very long time. When the franchise was banned for two years in 2016 and 2017, Ashwin was drafted into Rising Pune Supergiant. However, a sports hernia forced him out of IPL 2017.

A year later, it was clear that Chennai Super Kings' vision for the future did not involve him. So, he was bought by the Kings XI Punjab for Rs 7.6 crores. That year itself, he was announced as the KXIP skipper.

Now, for IPL 2019, he has been retained and will captain the side once again.

Expectations for IPL 2019

In the past few years, Punjab have been known for furious fast starts. But then, as the season progresses, they generally run out of steam and end up somewhere in the mid-table.

As a result of them waning towards the end, they would often miss out on a playoffs berth. But now, as we head into IPL 2019, can Ravichandran Ashwin get the monkey off their backs and lead the team to a maiden IPL triumph?

<img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-129974" src="http://www.essentiallysports.com/wp-content/uploads/cricket-t20-ind-ipl-punjab-delhi_a4387ab8-3e59-11e8-bac8-9a0e74ac6915.jpg" alt="IPL 2018" width="960" height="540" />

Ravichandran Ashwin

Profile 32-year old all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin first broke into the cricket scene, courtesy IPL. Owing to impressive performances in the cash-rich league, he got the nod for the national team. The Chennai-born spinner debuted for the Indian team&#8217;s ODI and T20 sides in 2010, and Test debut a year later. IPL Career Ravichandran Ashwin first made his mark in IPL 2009 with the Chennai Super Kings. That year, CSK reached the semifinal stage, but lost to eventual runners-up Royal Challengers Bangalore. However, a year later, the Super Kings proved that they were a force to be reckoned with, and Ashwin was there for it all. He went on to snag a grand total of 13 wickets in 2010. A year later, CSK became the first team to ever defend their title. Once again, Ashwin was in the thick of action and helped guide CSK to victory. He remained with CSK for a very long time. When the franchise was banned for two years in 2016 and 2017, Ashwin was drafted into Rising Pune Supergiant. However, a sports hernia forced him out of IPL 2017. A year later, it was clear that Chennai Super Kings&#8217; vision for the future did not involve him. So, he was bought by the Kings XI Punjab for Rs 7.6 crores. That year itself, he was announced as the KXIP skipper. Now, for IPL 2019, he has been retained and will captain the side once again. Expectations for IPL 2019 In the past few years, Punjab have been known for furious fast starts. But then, as the season progresses, they generally run out of steam and end up somewhere in the mid-table. As a result of them waning towards the end, they would often miss out on a playoffs berth. But now, as we head into IPL 2019, can Ravichandran Ashwin get the monkey off their backs and lead the team to a maiden IPL triumph?