Former Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin didn't look impressed with Team India's strategy at the fifth and final test at the Oval. He believes that the visiting team's strategy towards the game looked very weak. In the Oval test, the decision at the end of the day can go in favor of any team, as England needs 35 runs to win, and on the other hand, India needs 4 wickets. Shubman Gill & Co. gave the target of 374 runs to the opposition team, and in response to that, Harry Brook and Joe Root tried their best to snatch the game, scoring centuries on day 4 of the test. However, the centurions Joe Root and Harry Brook have now made their way back to the pavilion.
At current, Jamie Smith and Jamie Overton are on the field and will continue the game on the last day of the test, and they will be trying their best to win the series by 3-1 to their name.
Ashwin believes that Team India could have gone with Washington Sundar to break the 195-run partnership between Harry Brook and Joe Root. The former spinner, speaking on his YouTube channel, stated that
"Coming back to the topic of spinners not being used. I have felt in this series that there has been a lack of game awareness and, in many ways, our tactical acumen both on and off the field. This is the main reason why England is ahead in this series and India is behind. We haven't been the sharpest."
Further, he said,
"I feel Shubman Gill will get really better as the captain. He will learn. But sometimes if you feel that you can play spin really well, you will not bring spinners into the attack, and when you miss the moment to bring the spinners in these conditions, then the spinner becomes a really defensive option."
Ashwin believes that if Sundar had been called earlier, then they could have put some pressure on the England batters. He said,
"When Harry Brook started taking it on, after 20 runs, you could have brought on the spinner to choke the run flows. From the other end, a pacer could have bowled. With all this in mind, Washington Sundar could have been brought earlier into the attack."
Further, he said,
"Making these mistakes is a huge gap. We don't know whether the message is going from outside to the middle. We don't know the dressing room talks. But in today's day and age, these mistakes can definitely be avoided."