Ashwin is like an app, keeps updating: Panesar hails brilliant spinner

Listen to Story England's legendary spinner Monty Panesar heaped praise on India's veteran off spinner Ravichandran Ashwin ahead of the 5 match Test series between the two sides.. England is set to tour India for a gruelling Test series, beginning from January 25 at Hyderabad's Rajiv Gandhi Stadium.

India's front line spinner, Ashwin, is expected to play a crucial role and would look to exploit the spin friendly conditions that will be on offer at the Indian tracks. It will be interesting to see if the Ashwin's spin web with their Bazball approach. Monty, while speaking to Hindustan Times, hailed Ashwin's meteoric rise as a Test spinner for his nation.

He praised him for always adapting to the conditions to deliver for his team and working to get better every time. "He has had the mindset to keep adapting and bowling different deliveries. He kept getting better. It's not easy all the time to take a lot of wickets on turning pitches. He's been given turners at home, but you can see the way he adapts all the time.

He's like an app, he keeps updating every six months! That's what he has done throughout his career," Monty said. Monty even called himself as a student of the off spinner and revealed that he had learnt a lot from the Indian bowler. "I always find that I am a student when it comes to Ashwin's bowling.

I feel I am continually learning something new about his bowling. That's the asset Ashwin is. He is a brilliant bowler," Monty added. Ashwin is on the cusp of completing 500 Test wickets as the veteran player needs just 10 wickets to enter the elite club. In his 12 year long career, Ashwin took 490 Test wickets from 95 Tests.

He would become the 9th bowler and 5th spinner to take 500 Test wickets for his country. Ashwin will have a great chance to reach this milestone in the Test series against England. The veteran player has also been nominated for the prestigious award of for his exceptional performance in the longest format of the game.

Monty was a crucial part of England's historic triumph over India in the 2012 13 Test series under Alastair Cook's captaincy. The left arm spinner scalped 17 wickets in Tests for his team. Ever since, England haven't won a Test series on Indian soil..