All sorts of rumours are surrounding R Ashwin’s retirement here, after the off-spinner called it a day after the third IND vs AUS Test in Brisbane. Ashwin was overlooked for the first and the third Test, and many feel, that could have triggered the decision. Amidst all these speculations, his father has only added fuel to fire, by suggesting, his son was being constantly humiliated that led him to retire.
“I too came to know last minute, actually,” Ravichandran told CNN News18. “What was going on in his mind I don’t know. He just announced. I too accepted it with full pleasure. I did not have any feeling at all for that. But the way he gave his retirement, one part I was very happy, another part not happy because he should have continued.”
“(Retiring) is his (Ashwin’s) wish and desire, I cannot interfere in that, but the way in which he gave that, there could be many reasons. Only Ashwin knows, maybe humiliation,” he said.
In fact, this retirement news came as a sudden one for the father. Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma had claimed at the PC, that Ashwin had it on his mind for a while. “Definitely, no doubt about it (being emotional for the family), because he was on the field for 14-15 years. The sudden change – retirement – gave us really kind of a shock. At the same time, we were expecting it because humiliation was going on. How long he can tolerate all those things? Probably, he would have decided on his own,” Ravichandran said.
Ashwin eventually, took a step back after claiming 765 wickets for the country, Ravichandran also made it clear, that he didn’t do much in his child’s cricket career, except for taking him to the stadium on bike.
“I used to take him by bike and drop him off for practice. I did not get involve much in his cricket. What I did was to encourage him to focus on both studies and cricket. At home I used to talk to him that’s all. Rest he did it (on his own). I did not do anything because of his intelligence and brilliance he came up on his own. I did not help him that much in cricket, but on his own and with his brain work, he did everything (by himself),” he said.
