• Home
  • Cricket News
  • I Just Knew They Were Going To Pick Me Ravi Ashwin Was Confident Of Joining Rajasthan Royals

I just knew they were going to pick me- Ravi Ashwin was confident of joining Rajasthan Royals

India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has found a new home in the Indian Premier League (IPL) as he will be seen playing for the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the upcoming season of the tournament.


Ashwin had a fruitful Test series against Sri Lanka that saw him breaking Kapil Dev's record in terms of a number of Test wickets. The Tamil Nadu-born cricketer recently went past the World Cup-winning captain's tally of 434 wickets in the cricket's purest format.


Opening up on his momentous achievement, the veteran off-spinner shared how numbers are a part of the "journey" but not the "destination".


"The numbers are great, and it’s humbling really to see what I’ve been able to do in terms of the numbers. The more I’ve played, the more it’s felt like the numbers are a part of the journey rather than the destination. In the past 2-3 years especially, the feeling has been great, with series wins in Australia, the comeback into the T20 team, it almost feels like how I felt when I first broke into the team, wherein a lot has been going on for me," Ashwin said as quoted to ANI.


Ashwin reflected upon his preparations for the IPL and the challenges the world's biggest T20 league brings with itself.


"The IPL is a tough tournament, there are a lot of variables leading into every season which can have an impact. Dew, pitches, the opposition, you name it and there’s a variable that can impact a game in different ways – which makes it a challenge to prepare for things in advance and you’ve got to be ready at all time.


"However, for me, going into an IPL season is always exciting. The IPL gives a window of experimentation, something which has enabled me to come out a richer cricketer, irrespective of the results, every time I’ve been a part of it," he asserted.


The 35-year-old will now don the pink jersey as the Rajasthan Royals have added him to the ranks. Ashwin heaped praises on his current franchise and was confident of getting picked by them after they started bidding for him.


"As soon as I saw Rajasthan Royals bid for me, I just knew they were going to pick me. I’ve known a lot of people here for a long time, people who I talk a lot of cricket with, so yes there is that connection.


"The Royals, for me, are a team that just resonates immediately. For me, they’ve been a different team – always ahead of its time with regards to their planning and approach. They’re very bold and experimental in the way they approach their cricket, which is also the way in which I see my game, so it should be a good synchronization and I’m looking forward to it," Ashwin lauded Rajasthan Royals.


Being a senior pro in the squad, Ashwin talked about his role off the field and how with his experience, he can help the team.


"I feel contribution to a team is far beyond just contributing on the ground. I’ve always been a person who enjoys talking about cricket and has been very open in terms of having a discussion with anyone around the sport. With my experience and communication skills, I’ll try to have discussions with anyone who wants to have a discussion and help to the best of my ability, hopefully making a difference to the squad from within," he opined.


Further, Ashwin had a few words of praise for his skipper at the franchise, Sanju Samson.


"I think Sanju has got an amazing attitude and a good head on his shoulders. He’s always open for discussion, open to opinions around the game, so that’s a great quality to have. I do believe Sanju has got the vantage point as a wicketkeeper to judge the game with all the angles, the pitch and how things are going to work. He also has age on his side, and will definitely get better. I hope he has one blockbuster of a year," Ashwin concluded.

Discover more
Top Stories
news

ICC Women’s World Cup 2022 | Pakistan win their first game; help India’s cause in points table

Pakistan won their first match in 13 long years in the history of the ICC Women’s World Cup defeating West Indies by 8 wickets on Monday, 21 March. A rain-marred affair in Seddon Park Hamilton, Pakistan opened their account in the 2022 edition of the premier competition owing to a fantastic bowling display of their spinners. Five hours of non stop rainfall turned the competition into a T20 match, and Pakistan reaped rewards of winning the toss. This match was West Indies’ chance to push further forward their chances of semi-final, and they started in an attacking manner as well, taking on medium pacer Diana Beg and putting her to the sword for three boundaries. Anam Amin on the other end, bowled very well with her left arm off spin, and put a lot of pressure on the West Indies batter. Final over of the four over powerplay turned out to be a maiden and Windies batters, particularly Matthews looked frustrated, waiting to cut loose. Captain Bismah Maroof brought on Fatima Sana in place of Diana Beg and the move paid off immediately. Sana dismissed Hayley Matthews in the second ball of her first over and that started an agonising phase of play for the Windies batters. No boundaries came till the 10th over before the scoreboard pressure made Deandra Dottin cave into the softest of dismissals. Veteran Nida Dar, bowling a harmless off spinner found herself at the business end of a easy catch lobbed up on her first delivery of the day, dismissing the most dangerous batter in the Windies line-up. At that point, the women from the Caribbean shores were struggling to put bat to ball with spin being bowled from both ends. The spinners took over from there on, outfoxing Windies batters with their grip and turn. At one point Pakistan completed a team hattrick as well, shared between the 16th and the 17th over, with Dar picking two wickets in her last two balls and Nashra Sandhu dismissing captain Stafanie Taylor (18 off 31). Things looked ominous for Windies throughout as they struggled to rotate strike, something that would turn out to be the difference between the two teams. Windies salvaged the score a little making 23 runs in the last two overs, way below par of what they should actually have been able to make. The downfall was their approach, conceding lots of dot balls in the middle, not really looking for big shots or for that matter, quick singles. Nida Dar was the pick among the bowlers, taking her career-best 4/10 in her four overs and also registering the best figures for Pakistan in the World Cup. Once Pakistan came out to bat, they knew that this was not a kind of game where they needed huge shots. They knew and were wary of Hayley Matthews exploits against Bangladesh and started with a maiden over in their chase of 90 runs. Openers Muneeba Ali and Sidra Ameen looked for quick singles in their slow but steady start and Muneeba scored boundaries, only when she was absolutely certain that she could get her shots through the gap. West Indies were awarded with their first breakthrough in the 6th over of the game with leg spinner Afy Fletcher rattling her stumps against an ill attempted slog. At 23/1 West Indies hoped for a return in the game, but wickets did not come till the 13th over, when a set Muneeba got a leading edge trying to slog the ball over mid wicket. Shakera Selman’s ball sliced off her bat and she left the crease after a steady innings of 37 off 43 balls, paving the way for Pakistan’s victory in the game. One should not make a mistake of thinking that West Indies did not put enough pressure on the batters despite having a small score. They did, but Pakistan knew that if they can manage quick singles they could take Windies out of the game with relatively lesser risk. The Caribbean side was to blame for their poor effort in the field, with overthrows and missed chances of run outs plenty in the second innings. One could say that it was an off day overall for Deandra Dottin and co and they should not be judged over this performance. Nevertheless, wickets did not come in the subsequent overs and Pakistan chased their target down with 7 balls remaining. Captain Bismah Maroof and Omaima Sohail put together a partnership of 33* off 40 balls sealing the game off with relatively less drama. Pakistan’s win puts West Indies in a position that they had avoided for so long. With 6 points from 6 games, West Indies now are in a position where they can be taken over by both India and England owing to their superior run-rate. If India and England win their next games, all three teams will be tied in points having played the same number of games, but Windies will slip down to the 5th position, out of contention for the semi finals berth. This result massively helps India’s cause in the World Cup and they would now hope to cleansweep their final two games to enter the semis stages.