Ashwin will go down as one of Indian cricket’s all-time greats. He has featured in over 287 matches for India, the numbers paint a befitting picture of his impact with both bat and ball
Our Bureau
Brisbane/Chennai
India’s celebrated off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin revealed his decision to retire from international cricket moments after the Brisbane Test ended in a draw on Wednesday. Earlier on Wednesday, Ashwin appeared alongside India’s captain Rohit Sharma at the post-match press conference to announce his decision. Speculation about his retirement began to build when he became emotional and was hugged by Virat Kohli.
Ashwin will go down as one of Indian cricket’s all-time greats. He has featured in over 287 matches for India, the numbers paint a befitting picture of his impact with both bat and ball.
After announcing his retirement, Ravichandran Ashwin expressed his thoughts on the decision and said that it is “a great sense of relief and satisfaction” for him after taking a call to say goodbye to international cricket.
On Thursday, the Chennai-born player received a warm welcome after he arrived at his residence in Chennai, a day after announcing his retirement from International Cricket. “It’s emotional for a lot of people. It will be emotional, maybe it will sink in. But for me, it’s a great sense of relief and satisfaction. It had been running in my head for a while but it was very instinctive. I felt it on day 4 and called it on day 5,” Ashwin said.
Further, the 38-year-old cricketer spoke about rejoining the five-time champions Chennai Super Kings franchise for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. “I am going to play for CSK and don’t be surprised if I try and aspire to play for as long as I can. I don’t think Ashwin the cricketer is done; I think Ashwin the Indian cricketer has probably called it time. That’s it,” Ashwin added.
Ashwin played 106 Tests, taking a staggering 537 wickets, including 37 five-wicket hauls, and scored 3,503 runs. His contributions to Indian cricket extend far beyond these impressive statistics. He is the seventh-highest wicket-taker in Test cricket history and the second-highest for India, behind Anil Kumble (619). He also has the second-most five-wicket hauls in Tests, after Sri Lankan legend Muttiah Muralitharan (67).
Ashwin was instrumental in India’s dominance in Test cricket, especially during their rise to the top between 2014 and 2019.
In limited-overs cricket, Ashwin played 181 matches, taking 228 wickets. He featured in 116 ODIs, claiming 156 wickets with best figures of 4/25 and scoring 707 runs. In 65 T20Is, he took 72 wickets, with best figures of 4/8, and scored 184 runs.
With 765 international wickets across formats, Ashwin is India’s second-highest wicket-taker, behind Kumble (953). He was also part of India’s 2011 World Cup-winning squad and the 2013 Champions Trophy team.
Ashwin’s retirement marks the end of a remarkable era, leaving behind a legacy that will inspire future generations.
Former India skipper Kapil Dev is not happy as the off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin didn’t get a proper farewell before retiring from international cricket. “The next generation has to be better than us. If not, the world is not going ahead. We never imagined that somebody would come close to Sachin Tendulkar or Sunil Gavaskar…Ashwin has gone. I wish I had been there, I wouldn’t have let him go like that. I would have sent him with a lot of respect and happiness,” Kapil Dev said.
Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri opened up on what made recently retired all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin such a special player, saying he desired to evolve with times and learn “new tricks” that helped him achieve greatness. Shastri was on hand to see many of those match-winning efforts in his role as India head coach and the 62-year-old opened up on the spinner’s special quality when speaking with host Sanjana Ganesan on the most recent episode of The ICC Review. “I think what stands out for me was his wanting to evolve all the time,” Shastri said as quoted by ICC. “He was not the kind of guy satisfied as to where he started,” he added.
After the completion of the Brisbane Test against India on Wednesday, Australia skipper Pat Cummins reacted to off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin’s retirement announcement and said it was “a bit of a surprise”. “The timing was a bit of a surprise. He’s been a fantastic player all around the world. There aren’t too many finger spinners that have that kind of longevity. He’ll go down as one of the all-time greats. He was always a fantastic competitor; we had a lot of battles against him over the years here in Australia as well over in India. Just a massive respect from our change room to the career that he’s had,” Pat Cummins said in the post-match press conference.
Former cricketer Harbhajan Singh congratulated Ravichandran Ashwin on Wednesday following his retirement from international cricket and said that he has inspired the next generation. Speaking to Star Sports, Harbhajan showered praise on Ashwin for having a brilliant and outstanding career. He added that Ashwin took the tradition of spin bowling to the next level.
“Congratulations, Ashwin, for a brilliant career–an outstanding career, I’d rather say. You’ve taken the tradition of spin bowling to the next level. You’ve inspired the next generation. Thank you very much for all the efforts, all the wickets, and everything you have done on the field. Well done to you. Good luck going forward, and I hope we meet often now,” Harbhajan was quoted in a release from Star Sports as saying.
Former cricketer Monty Panesar on Wednesday showered praise on Ravichandran Ashwin’s illustrious career and said that the 38-year-old was one of the greatest spinners coming from India. Panesar said that Ashwin has always been the greatest off-spinner of all time. The former cricketer added that Ashwin had produced some match-winning spells for India.
Former cricketer Matthew Hayden on Wednesday praised Ravichandran Ashwin after his retirement from international cricket, calling the 38-year-old a “smart cricketer”. Speaking exclusively to Star Sports, Hayden lauded Ashwin as a player with a sharp mind and a strategic approach to the game. He noted Ashwin’s determination and ability to devise cunning plans.
“Yeah, I think Sunny described him really well–a very smart cricketer. And you know, he’s a cricketer who just stays on task, always working out a cunning plan. He’s got great belief in his own ability. He’s quite polarising in many ways when it comes to the cricketing public, and even to his own team–he’s a very strong-minded person. But I personally want to wish Ashwin a wonderful retirement,” Hayden said in a statement released by Star Sports.
One of the best ever to play for Team India
A look at the records made by Ravichandran Ashwin while playing:
Second-most wickets for India:
Ashwin finishes his career with 765 scalps across formats – second-highest for India, only behind Anil Kumble (953). His tally of 537 wickets for India in Test cricket is also second only to Anil Kumble (619).
Quickest to 350 Test wickets:
Back in 2019, Ashwin breached the mark in his 66th Test match for India and is the joint-quickest to get to that mark alongside Muttiah Muralidaran. The Indian off-spinner also holds the record for being the quickest to bag 250 and 300 Test wickets – having done so off 45 and 54 outings respectively.
Six Test hundreds and 500 wickets:
Ashwin remains the only player in Test history to have claimed more than five Test hundreds (6) to go along with 500 wickets to his name. He is only behind Ian Botham (5) in the tally of nabbing a Test century and five-for in the same Test – having done so four times.
Second-most five-wicket hauls:
Ravichandran Ashwin has bagged a five-for in a Test innings 37 times – second only to Muttiah Muralidaran, who has 67 to his name. The off-spinner has also nabbed 10 wickets in a Test match on eight instances during his career, behind Muralidaran (22), Shane Warne (10), Sir Richard Hadlee and Rangana Herath (9) and equal to compatriot Anil Kumble.
Joint-highest player of the series awards:
The spin all-rounder has been adjudged Player of the Series 11 times during his Test career – joint-best alongside Muttiah Muralidaran.
