Less than 24 hours after announcing his retirement from international cricket, which came as a surprise for the cricket fraternity, having revealed his decision in the middle of the ongoing Test series in Australia, Ravichandran Ashwin labelled it as an “instinctive” call after landing in Chennai on Thursday. The 38-year-old also opened up on his plan for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the 2025 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Speaking to news agency ANI after reaching Chennai from Brisbane, Ashwin admitted that although thoughts about drawing curtains on his career was on his mind for a long time, his decision to make the announcement after the end of the rain-marred Gabba Test, which ended in a draw, was purely instinctive.
The veteran India bowler revealed that he first felt taking the decision on Day 4 of the match, when KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja and the tail-enders fought valiantly to avoid a follow-on, but eventually waited till the end of the match.
“When asked if announcing retirement was a difficult decision, he says, “…It’s not. 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…,” he said.
Leading up to the big announcement, there were no rumours in the media, until Virat Kohli was spotted sharing an emotional hug with Ashwin in the Indian dressing room, just moments before umpires called off the final session on Wednesday, resulting in a draw in the third match. The off-spinner then accompanied captain Rohit Sharma to the post-match presser, made the quick announcement, before leaving without taking any questions from the reporters.
‘I’m going to play for CSK’
Ashwin, who will reunite with CSK in IPL 2025after franchise picked up at the mega auction in Jeddah last month, clarified that he will continue his career as a cricketer and play as long as possible.
“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,” he concluded.
