'Ashwin was just chasing milestone'

Former England captain Kevin Pietersen has offered insights into Ravichandran Ashwin's performance on Day 4 of the second Test in Visakhapatnam.

Ashwin's quest for 500 Test wickets, KP felt, may have impacted his bowling though picked up three crucial wickets.

'Ashwin was just chasing milestones. That's why he didn't bowl as well as he could have bowled. He did get it right on occasions. I thought he was way more threatening bowling wider outside off-stump round the wicket,' KP explained after the game.

'I think he bowled over the wicket way too much to the right handers. He can change bowling over-bowling around-bowling over more,' KP added.

Once Ashwin achieves the milestone of 500 wickets (hopefully in the third Test in Rajkot), KP believes he will return to his optimal performance level.

'I'm certainly never going to say that he hasn't got it or the England bowlers have found him out. He is a tremendous bowler and he's got some big breakthroughs. It is about the team; it's not about the individual,' KP said.

'He will want one more wicket and when he gets that, maybe you'll see him a lot more relaxed, the shoulder drops and I can just now get on with the game.

• England In India, 2024