Ravichandran Ashwin questions debate over India’s failure to win ICC events: "Even Sachin Tendulkar won the World Cup in his sixth attempt"
Seasoned Team India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has questioned the constant criticism of the Men in Blue over their inability to win ICC events. He pointed out that even a legend like Sachin Tendulkar needed to play six World Cups to win one, adding that people forget Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have also won ICC events.
India last won a World Cup during the 2011 edition at home. Their previous triumph in an ICC event came in 2013 in the Champions Trophy. Both the victories came under MS Dhoni. Team India reached the semi-final of the T20 World Cup in Australia last year but were hammered by ten wickets by England in the knockout clash in Adelaide.
Opening up on the constant chatter around India’s failure to win ICC events, Ashwin said on his YouTube channel:
“Even Sachin Tendulkar won the World Cup in his sixth attempt. That was the situation for a stalwart of Indian cricket. Just because another stalwart in MS Dhoni came in and won a World Cup as soon as he took charge, doesn’t mean that it will happen for everyone, right?"
He continued:
“Virat Kohli won ICC tournament in 2011 (World Cup), and 2013 when we won the Champions Trophy. Rohit Sharma has also won the Champions Trophy. So, we can give them some space. They are playing in bilateral series, IPL and so many other matches. But when it comes to ICC tournaments, you need those crux moments to go your way.”
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The Men in Blue will have a chance to set the record straight in upcoming ICC events. India will host the 2023 edition of the ODI World Cup, while the 2024 T20 World Cup will be played in the West Indies and the United States.
“Sometimes I wonder who is framing these questions” - Ravichandran Ashwin takes dig at media
Ashwin also took a dig at the media for being overly critical of the Indian team as well as its players. Referring to the debate over Kohli’s century drought in international cricket, Ashwin commented:
“People were consistently talking about Kohli not scoring a century for 3-4 years. Eight months were pandemic, after which there were four Tests. He also took a break. Sometimes I wonder who is framing these questions, how are they marketing these questions, and how they are packaging these questions.”
Returning to international cricket after a short break, Kohli hammered his first century after more than 1000 days during the Asia Cup. He has carried on his terrific form in white ball cricket since then.