AAKASH CHOPRA OPRA

Afghanistan captain fired the opening salvo when he claimed his spinners were better than their Indian counterparts. While there’s no doubt Rashid Khan, Mujeeb ur Rahman and Mohammad Nabi have been excellent in the shortest format, their effectiveness with the red ball over five days is still to be tested. The key difference between bowling in T20 and Tests is that the need to score quickly and paucity of time often leads to cheap dismissals in the former. But there’s no such rush in Tests, and therefore, only quality bowlers succeed over a period of time. Anyhow, it’s worth taking a close look at their three spinners and what they bring to the table.

RASHID KHAN

The leg spin sensation is arguably the best T20 bowler in the world now. His high arm action, quick arms and disguised googly haven’t been deciphered despite him plying his trade across the globe in various T20 leagues. Leg spinners with a high arm action might get less side spin but their googlies are more effective because they don’t have to change their point of release to slip in the wrong one. Generally, as a batsman, you see the back of the hand when a bowler is trying to bowl a googly but in Rashid’s case, you see the back of the hand all the time. Since there’s no visible difference at the point of release, it’s very difficult to differentiate between leg-spin and googly. His speed in the air also