1st Test: Ravichandran Ashwin's Five-For In West Indies Shows What India Missed In WTC Final vs Australia

Ravichandran Ashwin on Wednesday gave the perfect example of his mastery and skills in overseas conditions as he bagged a five-wicket haul on the first day of the ongoing first Test against the West Indies at the Windsor Park stadium in Dominica.

Ashwin broke a plethora of records during his potentially match-winning performance which put India in the driver's seat within two sessions of the match as the Windies got bundled out for just 150 after opting to bat first.

Ashwin completed 700 wickets in international cricket to join Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh in an elite Indian list of bowlers. He is the 17th cricketer overall to achieve the feat.

Ashwin also went past England seamer James Anderson to grab sixth place on the list of bowlers with the most five-fors.

The 33-year-old's performance in the Caribbean shows what India missed in last month's World Test Championship final against Australia which they lost after failing to take 20 wickets in the match.

His services were clearly missed by the Indian team against the Aussies, especially because they had six left-handers in their team. Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid therefore, made a huge error in not selecting the No.1-ranked bowler in Test cricket.

And the mistake cost them dearly as India faltered at the final hurdle once again after 2021, losing the WTC final this time by 209 runs.

Ashwin opens up on WTC Final snub

Ashwin also spoke his ommission from the WTC Final after his five-for against West Indies, saying that he had two options, either "sulk and complain about it" or "learn from it".

And he chose to take the second option rather than feel bad about not playing that match.

"There's no human being or cricketer who has gone through the highs without the lows.

"When you have lows, it gives you two chances - either you sulk and complain about it and go along and go down, or you learn from it. I am someone who's constantly learnt from my lows.

"In fact the best thing that's happened after this good day that I've had is that I'll have a good meal, talk to my family and then go to bed and forget about it because when you've had a good day you know you've had a good day, but there are areas you can work on and get better for tomorrow," Ashwin said after the day's play in Roseau.