Ravichandran Ashwin retires from international cricket

Ravichandran Ashwin has retired from international cricket with immediate effect. He announced his decision after the rain-marred third Test of the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy at Brisbane’s Gabba ended in a draw.

“This will be my last year as an Indian cricketer in all formats at the international level," Ashwin told media in Brisbane. "I feel there's a little bit of punch left in me as a cricketer, but I'd like to express that, showcase that in club-level cricket.

"I've had a lot of fun. I have made a lot of memories alongside Rohit [Sharma] and several of my team-mates, even though we've lost some of them [to retirements] over the last few years. We're the last bunch of OGs, we can say that. I will be marking this as my date of having played at this level.

"Obviously there are a lot of people to thank, but I will be failing in my duties if I didn't thank the BCCI and fellow team-mates. Several of them. I want to name a few of them. All the coaches who have been part of the journey. Most importantly, Rohit, Virat [Kohli], Ajinkya [Rahane], [Cheteshwar] Pujara, who have taken those splendid catches around the bat to give me the number of wickets I've managed to get over the years. Also a big thank you to the Australian cricket team, who have been very fierce competitors. I have enjoyed my time playing against them."

"Truly a very emotional moment. I don't think I am in a position where I would be answering the questions in the right way. Please pardon me for that. Thanks for being the journalists you've been, writing good things and of course writing nasty things on occasions. That's a relationship I think we would maintain forever, and I hope the cricketers to come in the future will also get the same amount of love."

Ashwin, however, confirmed that he will remain a part of cricket. "See you soon. As a cricketer, I have just stopped it. Might go on to be involved with the game, because this is a game that has given me everything."

Ashwin ends as the second-highest wicket-taker for India in Test cricket behind Anil Kumble (619 wickets in 132 Tests) – and seventh overall – with 537 wickets at an average of 24 in 106 Tests including 37 five-wicket hauls. He finished joint second-highest with Shane Warne on the list of most fifers in Test cricket, only behind Muttiah Muralitharan's 67. He also bagged 11 Player of the Series awards, joint best with Muralitharan.

The pink-ball Test against Australia in Adelaide, which India lost by 10 wickets, will remain his last outing in an India shirt. He returned with figures of 1/53 in that game. Before that, Ashwin claimed nine wickets at 41.22 against New Zealand in the home Test series, which India lost 3-0.

In addition to his bowling genius, Ashwin was a proficient batter, with a tally of 3503 runs in Tests, including six hundreds and 14 fifties. While he was nearly always a sure starter in India’s XI in home Tests, Ashwin was sparsely used in overseas fixtures. With India next in line to play England in an away tour, Ashwin will be 39 by the arrival of the next home season.

Asked to comment on Ashwin’s decision, India skipper Rohit Sharma termed it a “personal decision”, admitting that his absence will be felt.

"Some decisions are very personal and I don't think too many questions should be asked or raised. If a player has [made] a choice, he has to be given that choice, and somebody like Ashwin who has been there for us for so many years is allowed to make those kind of decisions on his own and we as team-mates have to respect it. He was very sure about what he wanted to do and the team has complete backing of his thought process,” Rohit said.

"Obviously, there's a bit of gap now so for us, as a team, to regroup and collect our thoughts on this is very, very crucial right now. We've got some time to think about how we need to proceed further. But speaking about Ash, he was very, very sure about his decision."

"I heard [about the plan to retire] when I came to Perth. Obviously I was not there for the first three or four days of the first Test match, but this was in his mind since then and there are obviously a lot of things that went behind it. I'm pretty sure Ash will be in a position to answer that but he understands what the team is thinking, he understands what kind of combinations we are thinking, and when we came here as well, we were not sure about which spinner is going to play. We just wanted to assess and see what kind of conditions we get in front of us.

"But when I arrived in Perth, this was a chat we had and I somehow convinced him to stay for the pink-ball Test match and then, it just happened so that if he felt that if I'm not needed right now in the series, I'm better off saying goodbye to the game.

"But obviously we've not been to Melbourne yet so we don't know what sort of conditions we expect there and what sort of combination. But just keeping Ash particularly in mind, giving him that respect that if this is what he thinks, we should allow him to think that way. And we should all stand by what he is thinking at this point in time.

"That is what I'm thinking right now and that is the kind of chat we've had as well - me and Gautam Gambhir as well. It's important when a player like him who has had so many moments with the Indian team and he's been a truly a big match-winner for us is allowed to make those decisions on his own and if it was now, so be it."

Ashwin, a part of the 2011 ODI World Cup and 2013 Champions Trophy winning squads, also represented India in 116 ODIs and 65 T20Is, claiming 156 and 72 wickets respectively. His last ODI came against Australia in the 2023 World Cup in Chennai, where he returned with figures of 1/34, while his final T20I was the 2022 World Cup semi-final loss against England in Adelaide.