How good is Ravi Ashwin, and what keeps him going? Each time you speak to the man, two things stand out. His hunger and his commitment. He just loves the game. That’s really it. Ask him to play cricket with you on the terrace, and he will put his hand up. Ask him to play cricket at midnight, and he will be the first out there. Ask him to rescue India from a tricky situation, and he will do it time and again. A real legend of the game, what defines his cricket is his commitment. He just wants to be there and be part of the action. Make a difference to his team. And now that it’s all red-ball cricket for him, Ashwin will soak in every second he has, every ball he faces and every wicket he takes. It is his life out there, and that’s what makes it special. Ashwin isn’t playing a sport. He is living his life over those 22 yards, and loving every second of it.
Education has always given Ashwin an edge over others, and perhaps that’s one of the reasons he has been so sure about how he leads his life and his go-to philosophy. Whatever be the case, suffice to say Ashwin still has a lot to contribute to Indian cricket. He still remains one of our best, and a match-winner for India. With age increasingly becoming irrelevant in sport thanks to science, Ashwin definitely has a few years left, and no one knows that better. The century was stellar, and things will surely get better for Ashwin in the next four days on his home turf.
Be it the Sydney partnership with Hanuma Vihari in January 2021 where Ashwin, with serious back spasms, saved India the Test match, or the World T20 match against Pakistan where he kept his calm to win the wide against Mohammed Nawaz off the second-last ball, he has always handled pressure well. Today was yet one more example. With the Bangladesh bowlers all over India and the team struggling at 144-6, Ashwin needed to be there with Jadeja to seize control of the game. He played himself in, counter-attacked as needed, and at no point did he seem flustered. And when the loose balls came, he pounced. Gradually, Bangladesh started to lose control and India were cruising.
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Ashwin the all-rounder deserves far greater recognition than he gets. His 500-plus wickets at less than 24 makes him one of the best ever, and as a result, his batting contributions often go unnoticed. But with six Test hundreds and many important knocks over the last decade, Ashwin the all-rounder has been one of India’s finest.
With Ashwin, what we will always get is competitiveness. Having known him for years, I remember a comment he once made. “If I die playing cricket, I wouldn’t mind,” he said. “I will do everything I can to play the game for India. That’s the only thing I have wanted to do. And I am fortunate that I have got the opportunity. You will always see me give more than my best. Yes, I will fail. In sport, you have to fail. But effort, that’s where you will see I will never back down. Give it my all. Results will come.”
It is this mindset that sets him apart. Be it his special physical training during Covid-19, or his determination to bat out the Sydney Test when he wasn’t even able to stand up, Ashwin has done it time and again. And with Ravi Jadeja, his bowling partner for years, for company, he has now given India the start they needed as they embark on a very important few months in red-ball cricket. Can Bangladesh come back from here? With Ashwin playing at home, he will yet again have a huge say in deciding this. Few would want to bet against him.