R Ashwin retires from international cricket: 5 statements of the star spinner that highlighted his genius
Ravichandran Ashwin is nothing short of a cricketing genius on the field. The star Indian spinner has delivered several match-winning performances and bowled many memorable spells over the years, guiding India to numerous wins with his magical bowling.
However, the 38-year-old is a genius not just on the field but also off it. Apart from his cricketing skills, Ashwin is also known for his witty statements and remarks, which also show his genius off the field.
The Indian all-rounder announced his retirement from International cricket after the third Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25 Test against Australia at The Gabba.
He ended his career with 537 Test wickets, 156 ODI wickets, and 72 T20I wickets. Ashwin also scored 3503 Test runs, including six centuries and 14 half-centuries, showcasing his all-round abilities.
Ashwin was a part of the Indian team during their 2011 ODI World Cup and 2013 Champions Trophy triumphs. Apart from his heroics on the field, there have been several instances where the all-rounder has also proven his wit with his statements.
5 statements of the R Ashwin that highlighted his genius
#5 At what time, what bad ball you choose to bowl can also be very effective in T20
In 2021, R Ashwin stated that in T20 cricket, for a bowler, probably luck matters more than skills. In a discussion on his YouTube show DRS with Ash, the off-spinner said:
“At what time, what bad ball you choose to bowl can also be very effective in T20.”
Giving an example of the same, Ashwin went on to explain how he got the better of Manish Pandey in an Indian Premier League (IPL) match.
“I guess it was during my last game for Punjab Kings against Sunrisers Hyderabad. The wicket was very flat. So, I had a deep cover and long-off and bowled wide outside-off skidding balls. He had to reach for it, played his cuts and got some singles. But after that, he came outside off-stump. He stood on the line of off-stump so that he gets close to the ball. So, I bowled a poor, short delivery outside leg-stump. He had to reach for it thinking it will hit leg-stump and got caught at short fine-leg."
#4 Six well-constructed bad balls could be the way forward in T20 cricket
In an interview with ESPN Cricinfo, Ashwin pointed out the strategy of bowling bad deliveries strategically to get wickets back in 2016.
"I basically think that six well-constructed bad balls could be the way to go forward in T20 cricket," he had stated.
"There is this statistic called control percentage - in a Test match, the batsman is in control of the shots he plays 92 to 95% of the time. It reduces to the mid-80s in ODIs and mid-70s in T20s. Roughly, a batsman is in control three out of four balls in T20. Yet if you bowl four out of six balls exactly where you want and you miss out on two, you can go for 15 to 16 runs an over," he explained.
#3 Who defines what a good surface is?
In 2021, India beat England by 10 wickets in the Ahmedabad Test and there were questions raised about the pitch. Murmurs were going around that India won the game because the pitch was in their favor.
However, in an interaction with reporters, Ashwin hit back asking why the surface was being spoken so much about.
"The fact remains that the talk around the surface...it's just getting out of hands yaar. Why would you talk about the surface to us time and time again? Has there been any instance where the surface has been spoken about at any other place, any other country we have played games in?" he said.
When an English media member asked Ashwin whether it was a "good Test wicket", the spinner countered by asking "What is a good surface?"
"The bowlers want to win the game. The batsman needs to bat well to get runs. No question about it. What makes a good surface? Who defines this? Seam on the first day and then bat well and then spin on the last two days? Come on! Who makes all these rules, we need to get over it and not talk about whatever picture you want to paint," he said.
#2 I'll use that as an advantage for myself
India were set to play Zimbabwe in their final group-stage match of the T20 World Cup in 2022. Ahead of the match, Ashwin attended a pre-match press conference where he was asked his opinion on players saying they would not like to Mankad.
"I also wouldn't like to get run out at the non-striker because it's a form of dismissal, and it's pretty legal," Ashwin cheekily replied.
"It's good. I mean, if people are going to come out and say that they won't do it, as a cricketer, I'll use that as an advantage for myself," he added.
#1 There is no rule more unfair for a player than RTM
Ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction, Ashwin, on his YouTube channel, smartly hinted at the possible return of the Right To Match (RTM) rule at the 2025 auction.
“There is no rule more unfair for a player than RTM. Because how has the RTM rule been so far? For example, there is a player called X. He is on a team called, let us say, Sunrisers. His current value is around ₹five-six crores. He has gone into the auction. Now say Sunrisers want to buy the player back. So, the Sunrisers will bid for the player at a base price of 2 crore,” he had stated.
He had gone on to explain how only the franchise retaining the player would benefit.
“Then, let us say, KKR and the Mumbai Indians are bidding for the player. The bid goes up to 6 crores and finally, they say, 'The player is sold to the Mumbai Indians for 6 crores.' So, with RTM, the Sunrisers will then bid for and take the player at 6 crores. The problem here is that Sunrisers are happy. But KKR and MI are unhappy. The only person (party) happy is Sunrisers. Because, in the beginning, they gave attendance bid at base price,” the off-spinner had added.
The BCCI had reportedly had a meeting with the owners of all franchises with one point of discussion being the reintroduction of the RTM rule at the auctions, which was eventually implemented as well.