Ashwin was on his way to becoming India’s greatest Test bowler. Why the googly mid-series?

Did rejection hurt him so bad that he couldn’t take it anymore? This question has left the Indian cricket world in a tizzy as Ravichandran Ashwin — India’s second highest Test wicket-taker — announced his shock retirement from international cricket on a rain-soaked Wednesday (December 18) afternoon in Brisbane.This wasn’t in the script for the 537-wicket man. It wasn’t too long ago that Ashwin had said he would retire the day he goes past Anil Kumble’s record of 619 Test wickets. Over the years, he had accepted the fact that Ravindra Jadeja would play ahead of him in overseas Tests because of the latter’s spunk with the bat. But was being downgraded to the No. 2 off-spinner in a touring party behind Washington Sundar the last straw? medium nocaption116466363Some red flagsSoon after the third Test against Australia ended in a draw, as rain pelted the ground, the off-spinning allrounder walked in alongside captain Rohit Sharma to announce his immediate retirement from all forms of international cricket at the age of 38.Many were left wondering at the manner of his retirement and the reasons behind announcing the decision now.“This will be my last day as an Indian cricketer in all formats at international level,” Ashwin said. “I do feel there is a bit of a punch left in me as a cricketer, but I’d like to showcase that in club-level cricket. I’ve had a lot of fun and created a lot of memories alongside Rohit and several of my other teammates. Even though I lost some of them over the last few years, we’re the last bunch of OGs, if you can say that, left in the dressing room. I’ll be marking this as my date of having played at this level.”It is understood that Ashwin has been contemplating retirement for well over a year now. A dodgy knee hasn’t helped matters. The aches and pains and a deteriorating shoulder have been there for a while but India’s 0-3 loss to New Zealand — and his own inability to prise out wickets on home turners like he used to — may have contributed to the decision. Sundar getting the nod in Perth too may have been a red flag. medium nocaption116470518 medium nocaption116466432His announcement left those who have shared the dressing room with him over the years emotional. “I’ve played with you for 14 years and when you told me today you’re retiring, it made me a bit emotional and the flashbacks of all those years playing together came to me. Your skill and match-winning contributions to India cricket are second to none,” said Virat Kohli.Ajinkya Rahane said, “Standing at slip was never a dull moment with you bowling, every ball felt like a chance waiting to happen. All the best for your next chapter!”Batting legend Sachin Tendulkar said, “...I’ve always admired how you approached the game with your mind and heart in perfect sync. From perfecting the carrom ball to contributing crucial runs, you always found a way to win. Your journey shows that true greatness lies in never being afraid to experiment and evolve.”Kumble, the only Indian bowler to take more Text wickets, called Ashwin’s journey “nothing short of extraordinary". "With over 700 intl wickets and a keen cricketing mind, you are one of the finest to have graced the field.”Even opponents like Australian spinner Nathan Lyon had the highest praise. “The greatest spinner of our era! Nothing but respect for Ashwin. His skill set is incredible. We’ve got different opinions on different things, there’s no right or wrong. But to have those conversations with a bowler like Ash is amazing.”Ashwin, the only Indian allrounder to score 3,000 runs and take 500 wickets, did not take any questions after a brief statement, leaving Rohit to explain what had transpired. “I heard this when I came to Perth,” Rohit explained. “I was not there for the first three or four days of that Test. This was on his mind then. There are obviously a lot of things that went behind this. He understands what the team is thinking, what kind of combinations we are thinking.” medium nocaption116470644Ashwin will be 39 by the time of India’s next big home series and likely felt there was no point hanging on if the team had moved on from him. Rohit said he had to “convince” Ashwin to stay back and play the pink-ball Test in Adelaide, raising questions about why a proper farewell wasn’t announced there itself, instead of the end of a rain-hit Test in which Ashwin wasn’t even a member of the playing XI.Thrived on reinventionRejections, though, are something Ashwin had learnt to live with as a young cricketer. He was still learning the ropes when he was rejected midway through a trial match at the India Pistons ground in Chennai. The coach told him he need not turn up for the second day of the game.Then, during his first year as a Chennai Super Kings player, an official told him to vacate the team hotel and not come back, till he was recalled.At that point it did hurt, but it didn’t break Ashwin. “Believe me, there is nobody in this world who will tell you he has not been rejected — be it Sachin Tendulkar or Don Bradman — they’ve all faced rejections. As for me, facing rejections was the biggest learning curve I had, I have embraced it and tried to learn from it,” Ashwin told TOI during a recent interview. medium nocaption116471599It was probably a deep conviction in his craft that helped Ashwin soldier on for so long. A slightly confused teenager who wasn’t sure whether he would become a batter or a pace bowler, ended up becoming a spinner when a back injury almost finished his playing career.“I don’t know if I am an accidental spinner. But honestly, I think whatever happened, happened for the right reasons. Maybe this was my destiny, and I just had all these things that had to happen so that I could turn into a spinner,” Ashwin said.For the offie, spin bowling became an “expression of an art form”. He treated it “like a software that continuously needed upgradation”.While those tireless hours of working on the stock-ball — the off-break — always remained, his love of experimentation grew. One of the first from his armoury was the carrom ball in 2010, a mystery weapon that Sri Lankan spinner Ajantha Mendis had used against India two years earlier. “I had seen Ajantha in a camp in Chennai when he was nowhere close to the national team. He was bowling that delivery and pitching it with the same incredible regularity that we used to try in street cricket and fail. I parked that idea in me and when I saw Ajantha doing it for Lanka, I knew I had to try it,” Ashwin said.That was the willingness of a boy in his early 20s to learn new things. But even as he grew older, Ashwin had to come up with new tricks without compromising on his primary weapon, the off break. There were rough patches along the way. In 2013, sections of the media started calling him “the scientist” when things didn’t go his way.“I have a creative side, a deep-thinking side to me. And sometimes when I want to share those stuff and talk about it to people, you don’t often find synergies. So sometimes I felt that’s been a stumbling block and people have misunderstood me for that,” Ashwin tried to explain his tendency to polarise opinion over the years.But that never stopped him from becoming one of India’s greatest match-winners, especially at home. Making the most of spin-friendly conditions, his partnership with Ravindra Jadeja has yielded an incredible 856 Test wickets, making them one of the most lethal duos of all time.The duo became a nightmare for visiting teams on the turning tracks in India and the cornerstone of India’s decade-long Test domination at home.“I am jealous of his abilities but totally admire him. I have learnt to admire him for the last 4-5 years… Sometimes when you are in the race along with your co-cricketers, you want to get ahead of one another even inside a team. It’s like brothers going up in arms. And then you slowly start admiring one another. That admiration has gone one step higher, knowing that I can never beat Jadeja. I am comfortable in my skin but totally inspired by what he has done,” was how Ashwin explained his admiration for a man who often kept him out of the Indian XI on international assignments, even for one last time in Brisbane. medium nocaption116470757Big boots to fillAshwin’s 537 scalps are a testimony to his stature, commitment and rare ability. He brought a thorough, scientific, almost nerdy approach to the art of finger spin in his 14-year international career.Overseas, Ashwin ceased to be a regular feature in the XI but ended with 154 away wickets. He was more than a handy batter, a role in which he began his cricketing journey and now leaves after scoring six Test tons.“When we came here, we were not sure about which spinner was going to play. We just wanted to assess what kind of conditions we get,” Rohit said. “When I arrived in Perth, this was a chat we had. I somehow convinced him to stay for that pink-ball Test. It just happened that he felt that ‘if I’m not needed right now in the series, I’m better off saying goodbye to the game’.”Ashwin’s decision deprives the squad of a major spinner for the remaining two Tests in Melbourne and Sydney, but Rohit was supportive of the decision. “He was very sure about what he wanted to do. That is the kind of chat we have had as well, me and [head coach] Gautam Gambhir. It is important that a player like him, who has been a truly big match-winner, is allowed to make those decisions. If it was now, so be it.” medium nocaption116470936This Australia tour has seen chief selector Ajit Agarkar staying back to consult with Gambhir and the captain on the way forward for the team. Ashwin’s retirement may come as a message to some underperforming seniors to shape up. This is the second mid-series retirement for a top Indian cricketer on a tour of Australia, with then-captain MS Dhoni retiring after the Melbourne Test in the 2014-15 series.Debate will now rage on whether Ashwin was nudged or pushed, but there can be no questions on his legacy. He is one of the two greatest finger spinners of this era along with Australia’s Nathan Lyon, with whom he had a long chat after the game. In India, the land of spin and great spinners, Ashwin will be feted till the game is played. As for Sundar, he now has some very big boots to fill.Stats: Rajesh Kumar