Ravichandran Ashwin in action© AFP
Veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin made a sensational comeback to the Indian cricket team during the first ODI match against Australia on Friday but according to his Tamil Nadu teammate Dinesh Karthik, he could have made his comeback much earlier. During a recent interaction, the wicket-keeper batter revealed that he was considered as the replacement for the injured Axar Patel in the Asia Cup 2023 final against Sri Lanka but Ashwin declined the call-up citing match fitness issues.
As a result, Washington Sundar was chosen as he was already playing local competitions and training at the National Cricket Academy (NCA). He ended up playing the final which India won comfortably.
“With a little inside information I know, I’ll end up defending Rohit (Sharma), Ajit (Agarkar), and Rahul Dravid here. They actually called up R Ashwin first at the Asia Cup final. They had a conversation and Ashwin felt he wasn’t match ready yet. So, he said it’s better if I don’t come to this game, because Washington was playing. He was playing in local tournaments in Chennai and he was in NCA. So, they sent Sundar for that one game,” Karthik said on Cricbuzz.
“Then, Ashwin played a couple of local club matches, and then, they picked him. That was the whole conversation. Their first choice at that point as well was Ashwin. I understand Washington could’ve been misled a bit, but they choose Ashwin first,” he added.
Ashwin was emotional ahead of his comeback for the Indian cricket team.
“It is a great opportunity for me. Like I have always said in the last 3-4 years, it’s not about what I want to achieve in these opportunities. I want to give myself the best chance to enjoy,” Ashwin said.
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