The premier and veteran off-spin all-rounder for India, Ravichandran Ashwin, who recently retired from international cricket as the second leading wicket-taker for the national side with 765 wickets after the former leg-spinner Anil Kumble, has shed light on a different version of his first captain, MS Dhoni, under whom he was groomed at the competitive stage.
Ravichandran Ashwin reckoned that the former World Cup-winning captain would back the bowler in every possible way but would get livid with that individual if he came up with a very loose ball to a new batter. The 38-year-old announced his all-format retirement after the end of the third Test of the Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25 at the Gabba in Brisbane.
The Tamil Nadu spinner first flourished under the leadership of MS Dhoni for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the Indian Premier League (IPL), before marking his red-ball debut against West Indies. The two earned so much success in the Yellow Army and later on the Indian side.
Ravichandran Ashwin credits MS Dhoni for the rise of Tushar Deshpande in IPL 2023
Ravichandran Ashwin, in his first interview on Sky Sports since his retirement, felt that most of the captains nowadays have forgotten to follow the basics in the right manner, which the Ranchi-born has adapted greatly. He praised the wicket-keeper’s incredible ability during the interaction with the two former England captains, Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton.
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“It is a very simple question to answer. In my head, I think he does most of the basic things right, and most of the other captains miss the basic elementary things, which makes the game look much more difficult for them.” The Chennai-born addressed during the interaction.
The veteran reckoned that when a new bowler came into the bowling attack, the captain would give his full freedom to the bowlers, but at the same time, he would keep an eye on the progress and would be angry if he delivered a loose ball to the new ball especially.
“He would never, for example, give the bowler the ball. The first thing he would say is to take your field and bowl to the field. He hated the fact when a batter came to bat, and you gave a loose delivery, he wouldn’t take me off bowling. If I gave two three boundaries in an over, that is well earned.” Ravichandran Ashwin elaborated.
“If I gave a new batter a ball to cut or drive, he would be livid. He would make me feel my place, and he would take me off bowling. That is a very basic essence of cricket. Over the years, I realized people have forgotten the basics.” The second-highest wicket-taker for India in Tests with 537 scalps in 104 games explained during the discussion.
Despite playing his last T20 game for the five-time IPL champions during the 2015 season, Ravichandran Ashwin is the third leading wicket-taker of the franchise with 120 scalps in 118 innings at an average of under 24 and a strike rate of around 21.35 with the help of one four-wicket haul.
He credited Dhoni for handling their young pacer, Tushar Deshpande, in the 2023 season of the IPL, where the Mumbai-born finished with 21 wickets in 16 games and played a key role for the franchise’s fifth crown.
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“There are certain facets of the game that don’t change, and MS Dhoni keeps it simple on those accounts. Last year in IPL, he got Tushar Deshpande, and he got the best out of him. I know what exactly MS Dhoni would have told him.” Ravichandran Ashwin highlighted.
“He would have told him to get hit on the longer side of the boundary and give me two runs less than you gave last year. That does two things to the bowler. It relieves the pressure, and it makes him think I can get in a very small set of goals.” The spin all-rounder concluded.