It was a Wednesday filled with speculation as rain soaked the Gaba River. Rumors of retirement have been lingering and all speculations were immediately put to rest when Ashwin made it clear that he would retire from international duty.
Rohit Sharma has had some premonitions since the first Test in Perth. After Ashwin left the press conference hall, the India skipper told the media: “Some decisions are very personal and I don’t think too many questions should be asked. If a player has a choice, he must be given that It’s a choice that someone like Ashwin, who has been with us for so many years, can make that decision and we as teammates have to respect it. He’s very sure of what he wants to do and the team fully supports his ideas.”
Also Read | AUS vs IND, 3rd Test: After India equalize, Australia captain Cummins says rain break was frustrating
Talking about the origin of this decision, Rohit elaborated: “I heard the news when I came to Perth. Obviously there are a lot of things behind it. I believe Ash can answer the question. But he understands what the team is thinking. What, he understands what combinations we’re looking at and when we came here we weren’t sure which spinner was going to play either, we just wanted to evaluate and see what conditions we were competing in Ahead of us, but yeah, that’s what we chatted about when I got to Perth and I somehow convinced him to stay for the pink ball Test (in Adelaide) and then, you know. , it happens that he feels “I don’t need to say goodbye to the game at the right time” and we should all support his thoughts at this time and that’s what we, him, Gautam Gambhir and I are talking about. “
When asked about his personal memories of Ashwin, Rohit said: “I have been playing cricket with Ash since the under-17s. He was an opener then. A few years later, I played cricket with Ashwin from Thailand. Mir Nadu heard the news and Ashwin took five wickets, seven wickets. I was wondering who this guy was and then suddenly he became a five-wicket taker. Obviously, we meet again in international cricket and we have been on a long journey together since 2010.”
Rohit was glowing when describing Ashwin’s contribution to Indian cricket: “He is a true match-winner in Indian history. Whenever there was a crisis, we would turn to Ash and he would be there for us. Help. His record speaks for itself. He has been a servant of Indian cricket and left no stone unturned.”
