"You could have had a leadership chance"- Ravichandran Ashwin on whether he has any regrets ahead of 100th Test
Veteran Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin recently admitted that there were times throughout his Test career when he stressed a lot about certain things not going his way.
Ashwin also revealed that some people told him that he could have been the Indian captain. However, he reckons he is past the stage of getting bogged down by expectations and is just enjoying each moment as it comes.
Speaking to India's legendary leg-spinner Anil Kumble on Jio Cinema, here's what Ravichandran Ashwin had to say about his emotions on the brink of his 100th Test in Dharamsala:
"I really think that during this life of having ups and downs, at several stages I felt like, 'Okay, why the hell is it happening to me, man?!' But now I would actually say that these ups and downs have made me who I am. A lot of people even now come and tell me, 'You could have had a leadership chance.' But I have completely made peace with the fact that it's not happening."
Ashwin believes his hard work and respect for the sport eventually earned him the plaudits. He has played in the local leagues in Tamil Nadu whenever he could even after establishing himself as an India great.
Ravichandran Ashwin on not playing much overseas
Over the past few years, India have preferred to go with a solitary spin option in Ravindra Jadeja and with four seamers whenever they have traveled to the SENA (South Africa, England, New Zealand, and Australia) countries.
This has often raised a debate about whether they do not trust Ravichandran Ashwin enough to be their No. 1 spinner across conditions. Ashwin accepted that there were times when he felt bad about being benched but claimed that he has learned to deal with tough times. He stated:
"I genuinely feel bowlers play second-fiddle to the batters. This was always in my mind before that why do I get one game to fail and somebody gets more games to fail. Eventually, I have made peace with the fact that the team needs to win. When the team wins at the end of the five days, I am the most delighted person in the dressing room. I cannot put my selfish interest ahead of the team."
Shedding light on his preparations before any Test, Ravichandran Ashwin spoke about how he analyzed particular batters in the opposition. He also claimed that he liked to play mind games by adjusting fielders around so that the batter induces a false shot while trying to break the shackles.