Ravi Ashwin is on top of the world at the moment. The India spinner has had a stupendous year, picking up 72 wickets in 12 Tests and scoring 612 runs at an average of 43.7, including two centuries. His form in T20 was equally good, with 23 wickets from 17 matches at an economy of 6.3. Suffice to say, Ashwin is at his peak.
Ashwin was also named the ICC Cricketer of the Year and also the Test Cricketer of the Year for 2015-16 on Thursday, which was icing on top of the cake.
The 30-year-old is an integral member of the Indian team, one of the finest spinners of his generation and an accomplished batsman as well. Some would argue he is as valuable as Virat Kohli in the Indian team. For Ashwin, being the MVP is a mantra and not just an end result.
“I think I am always the most important cricketer in the team and most important cricketer for myself. I want to be invaluable for any team that I am part of, be it a league game in Chennai, Ranji Trophy match for Tamil Nadu, IPL teams or for India. I take a lot of pride in my performance. So my contribution is my only focus and not what I bring to the game or who I was before I got into the game,” Ashwin told Sport360 during the launch of the East Sports Management Cricket Academy at the Shyam Bhatia Cricket Museum in Dubai.
“No one asked me to take up this game. If I had failed, nobody would have taken care of my life. I decided to embark upon this career, took a chance and went all in at the poker table. I went after my dream, and here I am achieving what I want to do in life.”
It has been a phenomenal rise. Ashwin made his debut in 2010, got instant recognition for his clever variations and became an important member of the side.
However a couple of seasons down the road, Ashwin’s bowling started to become a bit unpredictable mainly due to his penchant for variations.
Ashwin then went back to the drawing board, dismantled his game and reworked it ground up, going back to a simpler method of success by repetition and subtle variations. The Ashwin we see now is a classic off-spinner who looks to beat batsmen in the air and off the pitch, getting top players out on the drive. However, the Tamil Nadu player believes the change he has made to his bowling style is just a natural process for him.
“I haven’t changed much, to be honest. The changes visible out on the field are a reflection of the complicated person you see in me. Because of who I am dictates those changes on the field. You won’t see many people around in the world, in any profession, who will be able to change or go all in to try and change something about themselves to be excellent. People settle for what they have in life and kind of stagnate. There are probably less than 1 per cent of people who want to take the chances that I do. I am proud of myself but I feel I haven’t changed that much, just matured a bit more,” he revealed.
He has had many memorable performances in the Tests this year, having scored two centuries, five fifties and snaring 10 wickets in a match on three occasions. However, the most satisfying performance, as a whole, for Ashwin is the Antigua Test against the West Indies in July, where he hit a century in the first innings and picked up seven wickets in the West Indies’ second innings.
“Antigua is one of the special ones as how it happened. I had got a hundred in the first innings. My dream was to score a hundred and pick up five wickets in a Test. I started off on a good note, batted at number six, scored a hundred. First innings I didn’t get wickets…
“What gives me a kick is people throw me down, criticise me and speculate about me. And when I come roaring back into the game and prove myself is what gives me a kick and that’s why it (Antigua match) was special.”
What has helped Ashwin express himself better as a cricket is Kohli the Test captain, who has utilised the spinner as the attacking option. While Ashwin said every member of the team, coaching staff and also his family members deserve credit for his success in 2016, Kohli’s captaincy did play its part.
“As a batsman, you don’t need a lot of help from anybody. You are on your own. You are given a number, you go out and bat and control most of your things. But as a bowler, it is very important you have the confidence and support of the captain on the field. As important it is to pick up those wickets and try and turn the game around, it’s also about the captain throwing you the ball and saying ‘come win the game for me’… or throwing the ball to me with a little bit of a doubt. It makes a huge difference to a bowler. Virat deserves a lot of credit for that,” Ashwin said.
However, the spinner didn’t want any inference to be drawn about the leadership of former Test skipper and current limited overs captain MS Dhoni. For the record, Ashwin bowled only two overs in the World T20 semi-final against the West Indies this year, which India lost while defending 193.
The recently concluded five-match series against England was another feather in the cap of Ashwin. He ended up with 28 wickets and 306 runs. Ashwin, however, was keen to point out England were a tough opponent and the 4-0 result doesn’t reflect how closely contested the series was.
“The scoreline may say 4-0 but they put in a lot of work in it. They put us under pressure on more than one occasion.
“I have a lot of respect for their players, they really played well but at the crucial moments in every match, we capitalised really well. That is also a message for our team saying how good we can be in the future. Personally I enjoyed the series. Now that it is over and we come up on the right side (result wise), it’s time to look forward and go into the next series with a positive mindset.”
