From day 1 to day 5 of the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023, many former cricketers, commentators, cricket experts and fans have taken the name of Ravichandran Ashwin. Ashwin’s omission came as a big surprise to many and the voices got louder as the game progressed.
Australia’s middle order batsmen dominated and India lost the match by 209 runs. Days after the dust had barely settled, Ashwin broke his silence on his omission and recalled an incident in his life when he decided to become an off-spinner and not just a special order batsman.
In an interview Ashwin said- “This is a true story and I am not speaking from something made up. One day I saw an India-Sri Lanka match and the Indian bowling was in pieces. My favorite was Sachin Tendulkar and whatever he did, we would concede those runs with the ball. I once thought I had to be a bowler. Can’t I be better than the pitchers that are out there right now?
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It’s very childish thinking but I thought that and that’s why I started bowling off-spin. This is where it started,” Ashwin told the Indian Express. “However, when I hang up my boots tomorrow, the first thing I’ll regret is that I was such a good hitter, I never should have become a pitcher.
“I’ve always tried to fight that perception, but there are different standards for bowlers and batsmen. And there are different treatments. I understand it’s a one-ball game for the batsmen and they need an opportunity.”
The veteran off-spinner also revealed that he had this conversation with a stalwart of the game. He agreed with former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar that bowlers get different treatment than the batsman, even when the latter is struggling in the nets.
“Some will get 10 wickets, some will get 15, some will get 20. The day I wore Indian colours, I knew I would only get two. So I was ready for it. It’s not like I’m being treated unfairly. The only reason I have improved or where I am now in how I play my cricket is because I have accepted that I will only get two Test matches.
“I don’t want to come home and say to the boss, ‘he got 15 and I got two’. I don’t want to do that because the only thing I can control is who I am and what I can do,” he added.