India’s off-spinning great Ravichandran Ashwin yesterday announced his immediate retirement from international cricket following the third Test against Australia in Brisbane.
The 38-year-old took 537 wickets in his 106 Tests at an average of 24, leaving him seventh on the all-time list and second only to Anil Kumble (619) for his country.
He also played 116 one-day and 65 T20 internationals.
Photo: AFP
“This will be my last day as an Indian cricketer in all formats at an international level,” Ashwin said at a news conference alongside skipper Rohit Sharma after the match was drawn. “I feel there’s a little bit of punch left in me as a cricketer, but I’d like to express that, showcase that, in club-level cricket.”
He was not selected for Brisbane with his final Test coming in Adelaide last week where he took 1-53.
“I’ve had a lot of fun. I have made a lot of memories alongside Rohit and several of my teammates,” he added. “Obviously there are a lot of people to thank, but I will be failing in my duties if I didn’t thank the BCCI [Board of Control for Cricket in India] and fellow teammates.”
Rohit said Ashwin had decided to call it a day during the Perth Test, but he had persuaded him to stay on for Adelaide.
However, he decided during this Test that his time as an international cricketer was over.
“As a team we have to respect that decision,” Rohit said. “He was very sure about what he wanted to do and the team has complete backing of his thought process. He’s had so many big moments with the Indian team and he’s been a big match-winner for us. He’s allowed to make these decisions, and if it is now, so be it.”
Australia captain Pat Cummins said Ashwin had been a fierce competitor.
“He’s obviously been a fantastic player all around the world — there aren’t that many finger spinners that have that kind of longevity,” Cummins said. “He’ll go down as one of the all-time greats. There’s a massive respect from our change room for the career that he’s had.”
Ashwin made his Test debut in 2011 against the West Indies and was also handy with the bat, scoring 3,503 runs with six centuries and 14 fifties.
Tallon Griekspoor on Friday stunned top seed Alexander Zverev 4-6, 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/4) in the second round at Indian Wells, avenging a devastating loss to the German at Roland Garros last year. Zverev, the world No. 2 who is heading the field of the prestigious ATP Masters event with No. 1 Jannik Sinner serving a three-month drugs ban, is the first Indian Wells men’s top seed to lose his opening match since Andy Murray in 2017. It was a cherished win for Griekspoor, who had lost five straight matches — including four last year — to the German. That included a five-setter
Donovan Mitchell on Wednesday scored 26 points as the Cleveland Cavaliers punched their ticket to the NBA playoffs with a hard-fought 112-107 victory over the Miami Heat. A seesaw battle in Cleveland saw the Heat threaten to end the Cavs’ 11-game unbeaten streak after opening up a seven-point lead late in the fourth quarter, but the Cavs clawed back the deficit in the closing minutes to seal their 12th straight victory and a place in the post-season. The Cavaliers improved to 52-10, maintaining their stranglehold on the Eastern Conference with 20 games of the regular season remaining. Mitchell was one of six Cleveland
Five-time champion Novak Djokovic on Saturday tumbled out of the Indian Wells ATP Masters, falling in his first match to lucky loser Botic van de Zandschulp as two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz advanced. “No excuses for a poor performance,” 24-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic said after 37 unforced errors in a 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 defeat. “It doesn’t feel great when you play this way on the court,” he said. “But congratulations to my opponent — just a bad day in the office, I guess, for me.” Djokovic is just the latest in Van de Zandschulp’s string of superstar victims. He
Manchester United on Thursday settled for a 1-1 draw with Real Sociedad in the first leg of their Europa League round-of-16 tie. United led on Joshua Zirkzee’s goal in the 58th minute, but the hosts equalized 12 minutes later after Bruno Fernandes’ hand ball and Mikel Oyarzabal sent Andre Onana the wrong way from the penalty spot. The Europa League could be a way for United to finish the season with a trophy after crashing out of the FA Cup on Sunday. A spot in the quarter-finals is to be on the line at Old Trafford in the second leg on Thursday next
RSS