Ravichandran Ashwin: Indian spinner announces retirement from international cricket with immediate effect Cricket News

Indian cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin has announced his immediate retirement from international cricket, ending a career in which he took 765 wickets for the country across all formats.

Ashwin, 38, made the announcement after India’s draw with Australia in the Brisbane Test, but he was not selected for the match.

He said: “This will be my last day as an Indian cricketer in all formats of international matches.

“I feel like I have a little bit of strength left as a cricketer but I want to express that and show that at club level cricket.”

Ashwin is India’s second-highest Test wicket-taker with 537 scalps behind Anil Kumble (619), while he has taken 156 wickets in one-day internationals , scored 72 in T20 internationals.

The Chennai-born player also completed 3,503 Test runs, including 600 and 14 half-centuries.

Ashwin, the seventh-highest wicket-taker in men’s Test cricket, added: “I had a lot of fun.

“I have made a lot of memories with Rohit (Sharma) and a few of my teammates, although we have lost a few of them (to retirement) in the last few years.

“We are the last OG, so to speak. I will mark this day as the day I compete at this level.

“Obviously there are a lot of people to thank but I wouldn’t be fulfilling my duty if I didn’t thank the BCCI and my teammates.

“On top of that, Rohit, Virat (Kohli), Ajinkya (Rahane), (Cheteshwar) Pujara, they took some catches around the bat and Gave me the number of wickets I’ve managed to get over the years.”

At the end of the ongoing series, Ashwin is likely to be replaced in the list of Test wicket-takers by Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon, who is at the top of his career took 533 wickets, four less than Ashwin’s total.

Lyon are likely to add to that figure with their final two games in Melbourne (from December 26) and Sydney (from January 3).

Tributes pour in for retired Ashwin

Ashwin’s current and former teammates, including Virat Kohli, paid tribute to the spinner on social media.

Rohit: I know Ashwin plans to retire

India captain Rohit Sharma said he heard Ashwin planned to retire but convinced him to extend his career to play in the pink-ball second Test against Australia in Adelaide. In this match, the spinner took one wicket and scored 29 runs. The visitors suffered a miserable defeat in ten games.

India defeated the hosts by 295 runs and Ashwin was ruled out of the series opener.

“I somehow convinced him to stay for (the Adelaide Test),” Rohit said of his teammate.

“As it happens, if he feels the series doesn’t need him now, it would be best for him to say goodbye to the game.

“Some decisions are very personal and I don’t think too many questions should be asked. If a player makes a choice, he has to be given that choice.

“He’s very sure of what he wants to do and the team is fully supportive of his thought process.

“The important thing is that a player like him, who has had a lot of moments in the Indian team and has been a real big match-winner for us, can make those decisions on his own.

“Since it is now, then so be it.”