Credits: BCCI/X
On Wednesday, December 18, legendary Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin dropped a shockbomb on fans and the entire cricketing fraternity by pulling curtains on his international career. The Indian premier off-spinner called time on his international career as the country’s second-highest wicket-taker in the longest format. His announcement came during the post-match conference, shortly after the third Test at The Gabba ended in a draw after rain played spoilsport every now and then. With this, he put an end to his legendary career spanning over a period of 13 years with India. He picked a total of 537 wickets and sits next only to the legendary Anil Kumble’s records of 619 wickets.
Ashwin is one of the very few players who have represented the Indian team in more than 100 matches in Test cricket. Earlier this year, he became the fastest Indian bowler to reach 500 Test wickets. With a total of 106 Tests, the Chennai boy has a total of 537 wickets at an average of 24.00 and economy of 2.83. The cricketer has also recorded a total of 37 five wicket hauls and eight 10 wicket hauls throughout his career. Apart from being a reckoning figure in the longest format, Ashwin has been equally impressive in the limited-overs as well.
R Ashwin’s Stats
In the fifty-over format, Ashwin represented India in a total of 116 matches and picked a total of 156 wickets. In the T20I format, the 38-year-old played 65 games and has recorded a total of 72 games. Speaking about his batting, the cricketer has scored 3503 runs in Tests, 707 runs in ODIs and 184 runs in the shortest format. The cricketer has also recorded a total of six centuries in the red-ball format. Overall, he has registered 15 international half centuries. His last century came against Bangladesh.
R Ashwin’s records and career
On the list of India’s highest international wicket-takers, Ashwin finds himself at the second spot after having claimed a total of 537 wickets in the Tests. He made his Test debut in 2011 against the West Indies. However, his international debut came a year before when he was named in the ODI playing XI for a fixture against Sri Lanka. He was a part of India’s 2011 World Cup winning team and 2013 Champions Trophy winning team.
