There are many terms in sporting parlance that no athlete wants to see written alongside his or her name. The one that perhaps hurts the most is ‘bench-warmer'. So when it is used, quite regularly, for someone who is 38 and running out of time and also the only player in Test cricket history who has scored more than five Test centuries (six) and taken 500 wickets or more (537), it is bound to pinch.
So, when R. Ashwin, who won a world record-equalling 11th Man of the Series award in the Test series with Bangladesh earlier this year, decided to suddenly announce his retirement from international cricket in the middle of a Test series in Australia (a la MS Dhoni exactly ten years ago), was it really shocking? Maybe, but not if you scratch the surface. The signs were there for a while. He just didn't want to be a bench warmer anymore. Bringing the curtain down on his own terms was the only logical step forward. Kudos to him for being such a gentleman, even while taking the toughest call of them all. But that's Ravichandran Ashwin for you—he may wear his heart on his sleeve, but he'll never lose his poise.
The Signs Were There
You don't have to be a cricket pundit to read and interpret the signs that indicate change is in the air. As Ashwin himself said, with Rohit Sharma sitting next to him: We are the last bunch of OGs.” There was a time when trying out new or less experienced players on overseas tours, especially to the SENA countries, was unheard of for Indian teams. But things are changing. The ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy in fact, in many ways, captures the essence of that change. Harshit Rana and Nitish Kumar Reddy made their Test debuts in the very first match of the series, and Washington Sundar (who called Ashwin a mentor), was picked ahead of Ashwin. If this was the case after the first couple of Tests, the message would have been a different one.
The message that went out here, though, was that Washy is being seen as a better bet—in terms of an off-spinner who can bat—than Ashwin in Aussie conditions. Australia is a venue where all teams like to bat deep. Apart from the 537 Test wickets that Ashwin has (536 before his last Test in Adelaide), he also has six Test tons and is widely known as someone who takes a lot of pride in his batting and can wield a willow effectively. After all, he began his career in age-group cricket as an opening batsman. But the management, helmed by Gautam Gambhir, who is famous for his no-nonsense and “team first” approach, is very clearly looking ahead and planning for the future. They want to throw the young guns into the deep end, forging them in the fire of unfriendly conditions. And you can't do that without keeping the ‘OGs' at the shallow end.
Mixed Signals
I am sure that Ashwin, being the intelligent cricketer that he is, must understand that. But what would have frustrated him perhaps are the mixed signals. For the longest time, he didn't know whether he was in the scheme of things or not. It's been like this in the shorter formats of the game for a while—the last ODI he played was against Australia in Chennai in the 2023 World Cup and the last T20I he played was way back in November 2022 in the 10-wicket semi-final loss vs England in the T20 World Cup.
Throughout his career though, Ashwin continued to reinvent himself, knowing fully well that it was the brand of cricket he played that would keep him relevant. He wasn't scared of trying new things—new run-ups, new delivery angles, perfecting his variation of the carrom ball; he became a true match-winner. But of late, the increasing frequency of him not being certain of a place in the Test playing XI was clearly the last straw for a man who prides himself on coming up with out-of-the-box solutions to fox batters.
Which is why, as reports suggest, he has been prepared to hang up his boots for a while now. According to reports, his friends thought he was feeling low for a while and his family too had been informed that retirement might be on the horizon. Rohit himself talked about how Ashwin's retirement talks had surfaced during the Perth Test and how he had convinced the veteran off-spinner to stay on. Ashwin was picked to play in the Adelaide Test, where he bowled 18 overs in Australia's first innings and took 1/53. India lost by 10 wickets. In the next match in Brisbane, Ashwin had to make way for Ravindra Jadeja, who didn't take a wicket, but scored 77, at a time when India's top order had not been firing on all cylinders. That, for Ashwin, was it. He knew he couldn't wait longer if he wanted to decide his own fate. The last thing any champion athlete wants is to be pushed out. Will we see another retirement or two after this series is over?
No cricketer worth his or her salt will take the call to end their international career unless they are sure the time has come—or, they have been told in no uncertain terms that chances of any consistent participation in the future are up in the air. In Ashwin's case, I wouldn't be surprised if it was a combination of both. There must have been another chat (just like the one during the Perth Test) and he would have realised that the writing was on the wall. Did he deserve a better exit? Yes, most definitely.
Why Ashwin Needed To Get Away
The fact that Ashwin took the call with two full Tests left to play and the series well and truly in the balance at 1-1 is indication enough that he needed to get away from it all. Away from the media, away from the team environment, away from fans, away from the game he has lived and breathed since he was a teenager. The last Test of the series will be played in Sydney in the new year—a venue where India could field two spinners. But clearly, Ashwin didn't have the assurance he needed that he would be among the two first-choice spinners at the SCG.
There are those who might feel that Ashwin's decision was a hasty one. But remember, he is the same man who staunchly stuck to his strategy of running out batters at the non-striker's end when they backed up too much, regardless of the brickbats. He was never afraid to take the unpopular or uncommon route, as long as he himself was convinced that what he was doing was the right thing.
Ashwin has exited the international stage in trademark style, ending a stellar career that many would have thought still had a few miles left in it. He is back in Chennai and looking forward to club cricket, including playing again for the Chennai Super Kings in the IPL after almost a decade. He earlier spoke about how what impressed him most was the way CSK fought for him at the auction, something he didn't find in the Indian camp anymore. No one was fighting for him.
(The author is a former sports editor and primetime sports news anchor. He is currently a columnist, features writer and stage actor)
Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author