Ravichandran Ashwin etched his name once again the record books with his stellar all-round performance in the IND vs BAN 1st Test at his hometown Chennai. The love affair between the ace spinner and the Chepauk stadium is not some unknown story, and what better way to keep it going than by excelling with both bat and ball in front of the fans who have been with him through thick and thin all the way since 2010.
From playing an U16 tournament organized by Parle to walking into the middle at the MA Chidambaram stadium when he first got his CSK contract in 2010, Ashwin is loaded with memories of his home ground, a venue that he deems is an apt Test match location comprising of a crowd that is very understanding of cricket. Well, one can surely ask how did Ashwin manage to deliver with the bat despite having very little red-ball batting experience for months before the IND vs BAN Test. The ‘jack of all trades’ had an answer for that query too, just like how he did for the Bangladesh batters and bowlers.
Ashwin’s love affair with Chepauk and Chennai
In an interview with Tamil Nadu cricketer Ashwath Mukunthan, Ravichandran Ashwin recalled some special memories from the Chepauk stadium where his career was given wings. Dubbing it as a magical feeling to play in Chennai, the spinner detailed on the evolution of the MA Chidambaram stadium in front of his very eyes. From his first match in the ground in an U16 tournament to the IND vs BAN 1st Test, Ashwin couldn’t stop heaping praise on his home ground.
Ashwin revealed that he felt he had traveled back in time while India took on the Tigers in the 1st Test. The reason – the red ‘clay’, (note: not ‘red soil’), that was used to prepare the surface for the match. Adding to the special touch is the understanding of the game by the fans in Chennai, Ashwin explained going on to cite the various unrelated chants from the crwod that he had experienced in grounds during the games across the country, including ‘das rupai ke pepsi‘. He added that he always advocated for proper Test center to host matches of the longest-format of the game in order to let Tests thrive.
“Chepauk and Test cricket itself is a love story. Coming to play here is a magical feeling for me. I have seen this stadium evolve from the old times. I first practiced in the centre wicket when I got the CSK contract for the first time. The first match I played was an U16 match here. They said that the red clay (used to prepare the pitch) had come from Mumbai. It literally felt like I was playing the match (IND vs BAN 1st Test) in retro, it felt like I was playing back in 2010,” Ashwin said.
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How TNPL brought the best out of Ashwin the batter
Ashwin enjoyed a splendid Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) season with the Dindigul Dragons before he donned the Indian jersey in 2024. The all-rounder made most of his opportunity with some game time in the league and used it well to hone his skills with the bat. The Tamil Nadu star revealed that he used TNPL to improve his batting in ways that he had always dreamt of. He added that he intended to continue his performances as a batter from TNPL to the Test stage and that he had succeeded in doing so. Even skipper Rohit Sharma had acknowledged the fact that Ashwin’s role in the middle-order in the TNPL had helped his batting improve enourmously.
“I remeber opening in a TNPL match, the video of which was shared on social media. Fans immediately asked ‘why is he opening, can’t you send someone else?’. I wanted to tell them in the comments that I have been working hard, putting in lot of efforts in my batting. But I always had it in my mind that there needed to be effort always and results would come your way eventually. TNPL is not IPL or international cricket but it gives me chance to experiment in game-time simulation under pressure,” Ashwin explained.
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