R Ashwin announces retirement from international cricket after BGT 2024-25 3rd Test
Team India and Tamil Nadu spin-bowling all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin announced his retirement from international cricket after the third Test of the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The 38-year-old was a part of the squad announced for the tour of Australia.
Ashwin made his debut in 2010 in ODIs against Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe in T20Is. In 2011, he made his Test debut against the West Indies, picking up nine wickets, including a six-wicket haul.
The Chennai Super Kings all-rounder last appeared in T20Is during the 2022 ICC Mens T20 World Cup, famously hitting the winning runs against Pakistan in a tense clash and helping Team India start off the tournament on a winning note. Ashwin's last appearance in the ODIs came at his home ground — the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai — where he played India's opening contest in the ICC Men's World Cup 2023 against Australia.
Ashwin has been a regular in the Test squad and was selected for the current Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia. He played the second Test, where he scored 22 and 7 in the two innings with the bat while picking up the wicket of Mitchell Marsh, which also happened to be his last Test wicket.
After Ashwin announced his retirement at a press conference on Wednesday, December 18, the Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) honored him with a social media post. They wrote on X:
"Thank you Ashwin 🫡 A name synonymous with mastery, wizardry, brilliance, and innovation 👏👏 The ace spinner and #TeamIndia's invaluable all-rounder announces his retirement from international cricket. Congratulations on a legendary career, @ashwinravi99❤️"
Take a look at the post below:
Ravichandran Ashwin's career in numbers
Ravichandran Ashwin has had an illustrious career as he represented India across all formats. The 38-year-old picked up 765 wickets across 287 international matches, holding a unique distinction of playing over 100 Tests for India.
In 106 Tests, Ashwin picked up 537 wickets and scored 3503 runs. He picked up 37 five-wicket hauls in the longest format while scoring six centuries with the bat, most recently in the first Test against Bangladesh at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium. Ashwin also was the fastest to reach 350 Test wickets, doing so in 66 Test matches.
Ashwin played 116 ODIs for Team India, returning with 156 wickets, while he featured in 65 T20Is and picked up 72 wickets. He is the seventh-highest wicket-taker in Test cricket and has been awarded the Player of the Series honor 11 times, the most for any Test player. He was part of the team that won the 2011 ICC Men's ODI World Cup and the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy.