Akshay Wakhare registered figures of 5/13 in the Duleep Trophy final on Saturday (Twitter/Harbhajan Singh)Harbhajan Singh has identified Vidarbha’s Akshay Wakhare as an off-spinner who should be in the India Test squad. Harbhajan made the comment on Twitter following Wakahare’s spell of 5/13 in the Duleep Trophy final on Saturday.
Akshay wakhare consistent performer with the ball from last couple of years in 1st class cricket back to back Ranji trophy champion last two years.Great spell yesterday 5 for 13 against india green.winning another championship for his team.way to go.Indian test squad calling 🏏💪 pic.twitter.com/RcSPcJefcL
— Harbhajan Turbanator (@harbhajan_singh) September 8, 2019
Harbhajan wrote on Sunday: “Akshay wakhare consistent performer with the ball from last couple of years in 1st class cricket back to back Ranji trophy champion last two years.Great spell yesterday 5 for 13 against india green.winning another championship for his team.way to go.Indian test squad calling.”
Right-arm off-spinner Wakhare, 33, has been one of the most consistent performers in Indian domestic cricket over the last few years. His five-fer on Saturday was the 19th of his first class career. He has been at the forefront of the rise of Vidarbha over the last half-decade.
Wakhare picked up a brilliant five-wicket haul to hand India Red the Duleep Trophy title as they defeated India Green by an innings and 38 runs in the final on Saturday. He was also on a hat-trick but could not get three in three in his short but impactful spell.
On the final day of the match, India Red bowled out India Green for only 119 runs inside 40 overs at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. Only Siddhesh Lad (42) and Akshath Reddy (33) could manage to stay at the crease. Wakhare and Avesh Khan finished with figures of 5/13 and 3/38 respectively.
Ravichandran Ashwin is considered to be India’s premier off-spinner. While Yuzvendra Chahal is a leg spinner, Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav – the two other specialist spinners in the current India set-up – are both left-arm spinners.
