5 times Virat Kohli lavished praise on Ravichandran Ashwin
Ravichandran Ashwin announced retirement from international cricket after the third Test of the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The all-rounder retired with 765 wickets and 4,394 runs to his name across all formats of international cricket.
Ashwin played international matches for India from 2010 to 2024. While he debuted under Suresh Raina and retired under Rohit Sharma, he played quite a few games under Virat Kohli's captaincy as well.
During Kohli's time as India's captain, Ashwin was his go-to bowler in the home conditions. The opposition batters would often struggle against Ashwin in India, and here's a list of five instances when Virat Kohli lavished praised on the former Indian all-rounder.
#1 Virat Kohli's emotional note to Ravichandran Ashwin after he announced retirement
The most recent entry on this list is the note penned by Kohli to Ashwin on December 18. The former Indian captain posted a picture of himself with Ashwin and wrote a lengthy note.
"I’ve enjoyed every bit of the journey with you ash, your skill and match winning contributions to Indian cricket are second to none and you will always and always be remembered as a legend of Indian cricket," a part of Kohli's post read.
Kohli ended the post by expressing his gratitude to Ashwin for his services to the Indian cricket team over the last 14 years.
#2 Kohli praises Ravichandran Ashwin - The batter
While Ashwin scored six Test hundreds for India, he was majorly known for his bowling only. During India's tour of West Indies in 2016, Ashwin stepped up and scored some important runs for the team. He ended the series with 235 runs, including two centuries.
"For me the biggest positive was Saha getting runs in the lower order plus Ashwin coming good at No. 6. Those were areas that were very important for us to solidify and we have done that in this series," the then Indian captain Kohli said after the series.
Even in the final year of his career, Ashwin scored a match-winning hundred for India against Bangladesh at Chepauk.
#3 When Virat Kohli called Ravichandran Ashwin an 'outstanding' player
New Zealand visited India for a Test series in 2016, and Ashwin stole the show in the first Test by taking 10 wickets and scoring 40 runs. His all-round brilliance powered India to a 197-run victory.
"He's (Ashwin) been outstanding for the Indian team. But if you see all the impact players around the world, I think he comes in the top three or four easily," Kohli said in the post-match presentation.
Kohli further added that bowlers helped teams win Test matches. In his view, Ashwin was one of those bowlers.
#4 When Kohli showered praise on 'champion' bowler Ashwin
In 2015, Kohli led India for the first time as full-time captain in an away Test series against Sri Lanka. While India lost the first Test, they bounced back brilliantly and won the series by 2-1.
Commenting on Ashwin's five-wicket haul in the second innings of the second Test, Kohli had said:
"Ashwin has been a champion bowler for us. He’s been taking wickets for us everywhere. Even on the Australia tour he was more aggressive with the ball. Even in his mindset, he’s bowling in a more aggressive manner."
Kohli further mentioned that it was impossible for batters to keep Ravichandran Ashwin out of the game for long because of his attacking approach with the ball.
#5 Ravichandran Ashwin's bravery impresses Virat Kohli
No cricket fan can forget the epic last over from the India vs Pakistan match of the 2022 T20 World Cup. It proved to be the last T20 World Cup of Ashwin's career, and he played a huge role in the team's win against Pakistan.
Ashwin came out to bat with two runs needed off one ball. Surprisingly, he left a ball down the leg side from Mohammad Nawaz and then chipped the next ball over the off-side to help India win.
Sharing his thoughts on Ashwin's performance, Virat Kohli, who was the non-striker, said after the match:
"That was a very brave thing to do. He came inside the line and the ball turned out to be a wide."
Virat Kohli and Ravichandran Ashwin shared a close bond over the last 14 years. It seems unlikely that they will ever play together again in the future.