Ravichandran Ashwin has ended his Indian Premier League (IPL) career after a long and successful run. The 38-year-old off-spinner played his last season in 2025 with Chennai Super Kings (CSK). After retirement, he said he now wants to “explore” cricket leagues across the world.
Paying tribute to him, AB de Villiers said during a 360 Live session on X, “Stellar career. It has got to be said, what a wonderful player. What a scientist of the game. A doctor, professor of the game. He always took it to the limits of the rule book. Generally got it right, even though he was frowned upon a little bit. I have a lot of respect for guys who study the game, and he was one of such cricketers.”
Ashwin made his IPL debut with CSK in 2009 and was part of other franchises too—Rajasthan Royals, Delhi Capitals, Rising Pune Supergiant, and Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings). But de Villiers believes he looked at his best in yellow. “He played for other teams but never felt settled at those teams. In my opinion, he should have always stayed at CSK… But I will always remember him as a yellow jersey guy,” de Villiers said.
In his IPL career, Ashwin played 221 matches, where he took 187 wickets at an economy rate of 7.20. Though his final year with CSK in 2025 brought only seven wickets in nine games, de Villiers praised his overall impact, even with the bat. “Very underrated with the bat in hand… Generally, with Team India in trouble, he would have sort of come through.”
Ashwin retired from international cricket in December 2024, finishing as India’s second-highest wicket-taker after Anil Kumble.
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