Synopsis Ashwin, as his five test hundreds suggest, is no dud with the bat, while Jadeja's three centuries include an unbeaten 175 against Sri Lanka. "They are not lower-order (batsmen), let's get that clear," Australia spinner Nathan Lyon said after Saturday's play in Delhi. ANI India 's spin trio of Ravichandran Ashwin , Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel were always going to play key roles in the home series against Australia but few, particularly the touring side, expected so much of it would be with the bat . The three have done justice to their primary role, sharing 32 of the 40 Australian wickets that tumbled in Nagpur and Delhi to help India retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy with a 2-0 lead in the four-test series. While they, rather predictably, wreaked havoc on tracks designed to suit their craft, equally telling has been their contribution with the bat. Batting at nine and eight, Patel's 158 from two innings is second only to Indian skipper Rohit Sharma's 183 and is more than any Australia batsman has tallied in the series so far. The lower-order trio scored 177 runs in India's 400 in Nagpur to set up their innings victory inside three days. In Delhi, where India slumped to 66-4 and then to 139-7 replying to Australia's first-innings 263, they contributed 134 priceless runs out of a team total of 262. Ashwin, as his five test hundreds suggest, is no dud with the bat, while Jadeja's three centuries include an unbeaten 175 against Sri Lanka. "They are not lower-order (batsmen), let's get that clear," Australia spinner Nathan Lyon said after Saturday's play in Delhi. "Axar and Ash could easily bat in the top six in a few teams in test cricket around the world. "They have a very long top order, let's just say that," said Lyon. It has been particularly frustrating for Australia to somehow get past the Indian top order only to be thwarted by the tail. "It's probably been the difference in both games," Australian captain Pat Cummins told reporters after their six-wicket defeat on Sunday. "It's something we'll look at. It's disappointing - those small margins in both games end up making a pretty big difference. " His India counterpart, Rohit, considers it a "blessing" to have spinners who can contribute crucial runs down the order in low-scoring contests. "It's a big plus to have your batting go as deep as possible. It is something we've been trying to get for many years," Rohit said. "It gives you that advantage as well when the bowlers are a little tired after bowling 60-70 overs, these guys come in and play some shots. " Don’t miss out on ET Prime stories! Get your daily dose of business updates on WhatsApp. click here! Monday, 20 Feb, 2023 Experience Your Economic Times Newspaper, The Digital Way! Read Complete Print Edition » Front Page Pure Politics Companies Brands & Companies More Infra Push Depoliticised: PM Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted in his address at the ET Global Business Summit on Friday that his government has depoliticised infrastructure development in the country, contrary to the past when such projects were seen only through the prism of political dividends. FPIs Shy of Naming Senior Officers of Parent Entities Several foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) are reluctant to name key persons in their ultimate parent organisations as ‘senior management officials’ (SMOs) to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). Read More News on India Australia spinners bat Ravichandran Ashwin Ravindra Jadeja Axar Patel skipper (Catch all the Business News , Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on The Economic Times . ) Download The Economic Times News App to get Daily Market Updates & Live Business News. . . . more less ETPrime stories of the day Real Estate Interest rates are rising, so are rental yields. Is it the right time to invest in property? 8 mins read 3 insights to kick-start your day, featuring Swiggy’s “poor judgement” 3 mins read Strategy Stock Radar: Technical charts suggest HDFC Bank is likely to hit fresh record highs in next 3-6 months; time to buy? 3 mins read Subscribe to ETPrime.