Former Indian cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin has opened up about the ongoing debate over the future of senior cricketers such as Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja. Ravichandran Ashwin also criticized the toxic nature of fan wars on social media, urging people to focus on the cricket debate.
The 38-year-old cricketer surprised the cricket world by announcing his retirement from international cricket after the third Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) at The Gabba in Brisbane ended in a draw. His mid-series retirement fueled rumors of potential trouble within the Indian camp.
It is very difficult to answer the problem – Ravichandran Ashwin
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Ravichandran Ashwin stated that retirement decisions are personal and he cannot speculate on what others might think.
“It’s very difficult to answer that question. I’ve just retired. I’ve known them for a long time. I can’t judge what Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli or Ravindra Jadeja think. Each individual has their own thinking. They just know what to do and what not to do. don’t do,” Ashwin said.
Fan wars on social media are getting very toxic – Ravichandran Ashwin
Ravichandran Ashwin drew a personal analogy while criticizing the growing toxicity of fan wars on social media. Ashwin said that he is a big fan of Sachin Tendulkar but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t like Rahul Dravid or any other player. He added that liking one player more does not justify abusing others.
“Fan wars on social media are getting very toxic. I’ve always said, let’s talk about cricket as cricket, not as player brand value,” he remarked.
“Take for example, as a cricket fan, I used to be a big fan of Sachin Tendulkar. That doesn’t mean I will talk bad about Rahul Dravid. I like Rahul Dravid too, but I liked Sachin a lot. And I consider Anil Bhai (Anil Kumble) was also a role model in Harbhajan Singh fan wars are the new trend,” he said.
That means the batting was tough – Ravichandran Ashwin
The Tamil Nadu-born cricketer has defended Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli amid recent criticism of their form in Tests. He pointed out that Rohit has admitted his problems but still hopes for future performances. Ashwin also reminded people of Virat’s century during the series opener in Perth.
“Rohit also said, ‘I won’t score today, but that doesn’t mean I won’t score tomorrow.’ And for Virat, people should understand that it was the lowest scoring series in the five-match series,” he explained.
The performances of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are under scrutiny after their poor showing in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia. Rohit missed the match due to the birth of his second child, but failed to make an impact in the next three Tests before sitting out the final Test match in Sydney.
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