R Ashwin Retirement: Off-spinner R Ashwin’s father Ravichandran has made a big revelation on his sudden retirement and return home in the middle of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. He said that Ashwin was being insulted and how long could he tolerate it. That is why he probably took the sudden decision to retire. In an interview to a TV channel, Ashwin’s father said that he wanted Ashwin to play more but it could not happen.
When Ashwin made the shocking announcement of retirement after the Gaba Test, did the family become emotional? In response to this question, R Ashwin’s father Ravichandran said, ‘I also came to know about his retirement at the last moment. It was his wish and decision to retire, I cannot interfere in it. But there can be many reasons for the decision to retire. Only Ashwin knows, maybe it happened due to humiliation he faced.’
R Ashwin returned to the country immediately after announcing his retirement after the Gaba Test. He returned to Chennai on Thursday morning and reached home directly. The off-spinner’s father further said, ‘There is no doubt (this is an emotional moment for the family) because he was on the field for 14-15 years. The sudden change, retirement really surprised us. However, we were expecting it because he had been facing insult. How long could he have tolerated all this? Perhaps, he would have decided to retire on his own.’
Throughout Ashwin’s career, father Ravichandran was like the strongest pillar for him. Ravichandran, who himself was a fast bowler in club cricket, urged his son to play cricket. When Ashwin decided to turn from a young batsman to an off-spinner in an attempt to make it to the state’s Ranji Trophy team, his father supported him. Although Ravichandran said that he hoped Ashwin would stay with the senior national team for a longer time, he has also accepted his son’s choice.
The father said that I do not know what was going on in Ashwin’s mind. He just made the announcement. I also accepted it with full happiness. But the way he announced his retirement, on one hand I was very happy, on the other hand I was not happy, because he should have continued playing.
Ashwin has responded to father’s statement. Ashwin took to social media on Thursday to address his father’s comments, stating, “My father is not trained to talk to the media. I never anticipated that his statement would be taken so seriously. I kindly ask everyone to leave him alone and forgive him.” He added a laughing emoji to convey a lighthearted tone in his message.
