"My mother was surprised and shocked to see me there" - Ravichandran Ashwin on leaving Rajkot Test for family emergency
Ravichandran Ashwin flew back to Chennai from Rajkot during the team's third Test of the recently concluded home series against England after his mother collapsed following a headache.
Sharing details of the incident, Ashwin stated that his mother was surprised to see him in Chennai and urged him to return to Rajkot for the Test match. Speaking in his latest YouTube video, the veteran spinner said:
"When I went back home, my mother was surprised and shocked to see me there. Her consciousness was a little on-and-off. It was 3 a.m. at night. The next morning, she asked me to go back to the match. I don’t even know if she remembers all this.
"I don’t want to give any details about her ailment here. It is her own personal detail, and I don’t know if she’ll like it either. But she was an iron lady in my family, and my home kind of crashed on itself then."
Ashwin also mentioned that his mother was following the match from the hospital and asked him to be with the team. On this, he added:
"The doctors told me that she showed better signs of recovery and still had to take a couple more tests. But then she was asking me to go back to the match as there were only 10 people playing, and Kuldeep was especially bowling well.
"Somebody was feeding her live updates about the match, and she wanted me to be there rather than here."
Ravichandran Ashwin did rejoin the Men in Blue side on Day 4 of the Test. India secured a comprehensive 434-run win over England, their biggest ever in the format in terms of runs.
"Can you see the highs and lows of life with this?" - Ravichandran Ashwin on going through an emotional roller coaster during Rajkot Test
On the cricketing front, the Rajkot Test was a special one for Ravichandran Ashwin, as he claimed his 500th Test wicket. He, however, stated that before he could think about the milestone, he received news of his mother's health.
Speaking of the highs and lows of the Test, he added:
"Can you see the highs and lows of life with this? I crossed the 500-wicket milestone. Before I could come back to my room and digest that feeling, I got the news about my mother, which beats everything. Once I got back home, the highs and lows came consecutively."
India beat England 4-1 in the Test series. Ravichandran Ashwin was the pick of the bowlers, finishing as the leading wicket-taker with 26 scalps across 10 innings.