Ravichandran Ashwin Announces Retirement from International Cricket

A magician with the ball and probably the finest in the cricketing world of all time, Ravichandran Ashwin retires from international cricket. A clever bowler and a reliable batsman at number 7 or 8, Ashwin was the backbone of the Indian team for a long time. His legacy is unmatched in test cricket and will surely be talked about in years to come. A tactician, whose understanding of the game bailed the team out of trouble many times. In the dying era of finger spinners, Ashwin created magic with fingers.

Debuted in 2010, Ashwin had a glorious career of 14 years, numerous accolades, individual achievements, and team success. Only behind Kumble, the legendary spinner from India, Ashwin’s tally of 537 wickets has won India many games out of nowhere. He faired decently well in ODIs as well, picking up 156 wickets. Ashwin knew his time was up as an ODI World Cup 2011 and Champions Trophy 2013 winner and called the day on his international career.

Let’s look at some of the records Ravichandran Ashwin has to his name:

Most Man of the Series

Ravichandran Ashwin holds the record for bagging the most Player of the Series award in test cricket. He had it 11 times in his test career, the most by any player. Across formats, he stands at the seventh number on the overall list. Ashwin’s dominance in the test was unparalleled, he was not just a tough lad to score against but also a rigid batsman in the lower order. As cheeky as he appears in interviews, his bowling was cheeky as well.

Most Wickets in India

With 475 wickets, Ravichandran Ashwin is the second-highest wicket-taker on Indian soil including 383 scalps in tests, 70 in ODIs, and 22 in T20Is, only behind Anil Kumble, who is leading with 476 wickets. His dominance in India is hardly to be matched. His intellect inside the cricket field earned him the title of ‘scientist’.

Of all the players with 500 wickets or more, Ashwin is second on the list of fastest to 500 wickets. He has been sensational ever since his debut and evolved continuously as a player. He was one of the chief architects behind India’s home dominance since 2012. His legacy is hard to match in any sense.

Most 5-wicket Hauls in Test Matches

Only behind the greatest Muttiah Muralitharan, Ravichandran Ashwin has the second-most that is 37 five-wicket hauls in test cricket. His ability to pick wickets at a good strike rate and great average put him on the list of all-time greats. In the subcontinent, he is difficult to crack and made batsmen’s lives difficult. His records speak for themselves.

In his 14 years of career, Ashwin made a lot of players his bunny. Some of them are quite big on the international circuit. Ashwin’s favorite bunny would be Ben Stokes, the English test captain, who got out 13 times in test cricket. The other two are David Warner 11 times and Alastair Cook 9 times. These names are surprising as they carry the reputation of dominating the bowlers majorly in their careers.

Reliable Batsman down the order

As an all-rounder, India did everything India could have asked for. A great contributor with the bat, Ashwin has 6 centuries and 14 half-centuries to his name. Scoring 3503 runs, Ashwin had a significant career with the bat considering the position he used to bat at. Some of his famous contributions with the bat are against Bangladesh and England, where he scored a magnificent century under pressure.

Ashwin’s highest score in test cricket was 124 against the West Indies at Eden Gardens in Kolkata in 2013. Along with Rohit Sharma, Ashwin stitched a partnership of 280 runs for the 7th wicket when India was reduced to 156-6. His second crucial innings came against Bangladesh in 2024. Coming to bat a score of 144 for 6 wickets, Ashwin formed a partnership of 199 runs with Jadeja. In the process, he also brought up his 6th and the most recent test century.

His contributions with the bat, especially in the BGT 2020/21 in Sydney, where along with Hanuma Vihari, he ensured the team did not lose the match. As an all-rounder, he has scored a century and picked up 5-fer four times in his career; ahead of him is the legendary Ian Botham. He has left a void that will be hard to fill.

His name will be written in the golden letters in Indian cricket history. His is irreplaceable and will surely be missed in the coming matches. It’s hard to accept the fact that he won’t be representing the country in any format. It was brilliant while it lasted. Since he is emotionally attached to cricket, Ashwin may be seen on the other side of the game. As cricket fans, let’s all wish him a happy farewell.