'It is really great for us': Ajinkya Rahane praises spinner duo of Ashwin and Jadeja

India's stand-in skipper Ajinkya Rahane heaped praise on team's formidable spin duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja for their vital contribution in the Boxing Day Test win against Australia.

Ashwin removed Smith twice and has toyed with the Aussie several times in the ongoing Test series. The Chennai-based bowler is the leading wicket-taker in the on-going series.

“He [Ashwin] is always looking to learn new things. He has good skills but is always looking to learn new things, and that’s what makes Ashwin great. I hope that he continues for next two Test matches and do the job for us,” said Rahane during a pre-match virtual press conference.

He went on to praise Jadeja for his performance.

“As a batsman, Ravindra Jadeja has improved a lot and that is a massive point as a team’s perspective. When you know that your number seven can contribute with the bat, that becomes really easy for you to actually get that (decent) total and obviously, in the field, you have seen him taking some brilliant catches,” the stand-in captain said.

“So yes, his addition in the team helped us a lot and he has been really fantastic and it is really great for us,” he further added.

The SCG wicket aids spinners and that’s why Rahane doesn’t want his team to take chances while facing Nathan Lyon.

“Yes, we have good spinners but Nathan Lyon is their quality spinner, who has done well here, so we don’t want to take anybody lightly,” he said.

(With inputs from PTI)