This Is How Sachin Tendulkar Inspired Ravichandran Ashwin To Become A Bowler He Is Today

The number one ranked bowler in the world, Ravichandran Ashwin’s commitment and dedication towards cricket is second to none. Ashwin was benched in an all-important World Test Championship 2023 Final against Australia at The Oval in London as the team management decided to go with the spin-bowling all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja and four pacers.

His ouster from playing XI for such a crucial game for team India raised several eyebrows and sparked a heated debate in the cricketing world. In fact, for many, Ashwin’s absence from the team’s playing XI was one of the biggest reasons behind India’s lackluster performance against Australia.

Despite having a disappointing outing in England, Ashwin took the first flight out of London a day after the WTC Final to join Dindigul Dragons in the ongoing Tamil Nadu Premier League in Coimbatore. Such is his dedication to the game.

This is how Sachin Tendulkar inspired R Ashwin

Recently, in an interview with ‘The Indian Express’, the Tamil Nadu cricketer revealed a story, featuring Sachin Tendulkar, that inspired him to become a bowler. Ashwin revealed that he opted to become a bowler after watching how the Indian bowlers of the past were not able to defend the runs scored by the great Sachin Tendulkar.

It has to be noted that R Ashwin, who has 474 Test wickets under his name, has also registered 5 Test hundreds so far in his career. He revealed that he regrets his decision to bowl as he had the potential to become a fine batter. He said:

“This is a true story… One day, I was watching the India-Sri Lanka game and India’s bowling was in tatters. My favourite was Sachin Tendulkar, and whatever runs he used to make, we used to leak those runs with the ball.”

“I used to think one day, I must be a bowler. Can’t I be better than the bowlers that are there currently? This is a very childish way to think, but that is how I thought and that is why I started bowling off-spin. This is where it began,”

He also added:

“However, tomorrow, when I hang up my boots, the first thing I will regret is having been such a fine batter. I should have never become a bowler,”

What do you think about R Ashwin’s batting abilities? Let us know in the comments.