Ravichandran Ashwin (; ) (born 17 September 1986) is an Indian
cricket
Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...
er. He is a right-arm
off spin
Off spin is a type of spin bowling in cricket. A bowler who uses this technique is called an off spinner. Off spinners bowl with their right-arm and a finger spin action. Their normal delivery is called an off break, which spins from left to r ...
bowler and a
lower order batter. Widely regarded as one of the most prolific spinners of all time, he represented the
Indian cricket team
The India men's national cricket team, also known as Men in Blue, represents India in international cricket. It is governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India and is a full member nation of the International Cricket Council with T ...
and was part of the Indian team that won the
2011 Cricket World Cup
The 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup was the tenth Cricket World Cup. It was played in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, while the latter hosted World Cup matches for the first time. India won the tournament, defeating Sri Lanka by six wickets in the 2 ...
and the
2013 Champions Trophy. He plays for
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...
and
South Zone in domestic cricket and for
Chennai Super Kings
The Chennai Super Kings, also known as CSK, are a professional Twenty20 cricket team based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, that competes in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The team was one of the eight debut franchises when the league was establ ...
in the
Indian Premier League
The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a professional Twenty20 (T20) cricket league in India, organised by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Founded in 2007, it features ten city-based Professional sports league organization, fr ...
(IPL).
Ashwin has taken more than 500
wicket
In the sport of cricket, the term wicket has several meanings:
* It is either of the two sets of three Stump (cricket), stumps and two Bail (cricket), bails at each end of the Cricket pitch, pitch. The Fielding (cricket), fielding team's playe ...
s in
Tests
Test(s), testing, or TEST may refer to:
* Test (assessment), an educational assessment intended to measure the respondents' knowledge or other abilities
Arts and entertainment
* ''Test'' (2013 film), an American film
* ''Test'' (2014 film) ...
and was the fastest bowler to reach 300 test wickets in terms of number of innings. He has won eleven
Man of the Series awards in Tests, which is the most for any cricketer, along with
Muttiah Muralitharan
Deshabandu Muttiah Muralitharan (born 1972) is a Sri Lankan cricket coach, businessman and former professional cricketer. Averaging over six wickets per Test match, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the ...
. As an
all-rounder
An all-rounder is a cricketer who regularly performs well at both batting and bowling. Although all bowlers must bat and quite a handful of batsmen do bowl occasionally, most players are skilled in only one of the two disciplines and are cons ...
in Test cricket, he bats down the order, has scored six Test centuries and is one of the only three players to have scored 3000 runs and taken 500 wickets in Tests. He had been the highest-ranked bowler in the
ICC men's player rankings multiple times, and holds the record for the second highest rating points by an Indian bowler ever in Test cricket.
Ashwin started as an
opening batsman but dropped down the order due to limited success and turned into an off-break bowler. He made his
first-class debut for Tamil Nadu in December 2006 and captained the team the following season. He played for the
Chennai Super Kings
The Chennai Super Kings, also known as CSK, are a professional Twenty20 cricket team based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, that competes in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The team was one of the eight debut franchises when the league was establ ...
(CSK) in the
2010 Indian Premier League, where his economical bowling led to his maiden international call-up in the limited-overs formats in June 2010. He was the leading wicket-taker and player of the tournament of the
2010 Champions League Twenty20, which was won by CSK. He also won the
2014 Champions League Twenty20 and two IPL titles (
2010
The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
,
2011
The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...
) with CSK.
In 2011, Ashwin made his Test debut against
West Indies
The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...
and became the seventh Indian bowler to
take a five-wicket haul on debut. He had greater success with the turning tracks in the
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...
, including taking 29 wickets in a series against
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, the most by any Indian bowler in a four-match Test series. In the 2015–16 season, he took 48 wickets and scored 336 runs in eight Test matches, along with 27 wickets in 19 T20Is, enabling him to win the
ICC Cricketer of the Year and
ICC Men's Test Cricketer of the Year awards for 2016. He has been named five times to the
ICC Men's Test Team of the Year and was named in the
ICC Men's Test Team of the Decade 2011–20. In 2015, he was awarded the
Arjuna award
The Arjuna Award, officially known as Arjuna Awards given for Outstanding Performance in Sports and Games, is the second-highest sporting honour of India, the highest being the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. The award is named after Arjun ...
by the
Government of India
The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...
. On 18 December 2024, Ashwin announced his retirement from all forms of international cricket. He was awarded the
Padma Shri
The Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī'', lit. 'Lotus Honour'), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. In ...
, the fourth highest civilian award, by the Government of India in January 2025.
Early and personal life
Ashwin was born on 17 September 1986 in
Madras
Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...
(now Chennai),
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...
, to Ravichandran and Chitra.
His father, Ravichandran, played cricket at club level as a fast bowler.
Ashwin did his initial schooling at
Padma Seshadri Bala Bhavan.
Later, he switched to
St. Bede's School for
higher secondary.
He graduated with a
BTech
A Bachelor of Technology (BTech) is an undergraduate degree that is awarded for a higher education program in engineering.
Countries
Australia
In Australia, the Bachelor of Technology degree is offered by RMIT University, Edith Cowan Univ ...
in
Information Technology
Information technology (IT) is a set of related fields within information and communications technology (ICT), that encompass computer systems, software, programming languages, data processing, data and information processing, and storage. Inf ...
from
SSN College of Engineering, Chennai.
Ashwin started playing cricket at the age of nine for
YMCA
YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It has nearly 90,000 staff, some 920,000 volunteers and 12,000 branches w ...
and was coached by Chandrasekar Rao during the early part of his career.
Later, when he switched to St. Bede's, which had a cricket academy where he was coached by C K Vijaya Kumar. Initially, he took up
medium pace bowling before he switched to
off spin
Off spin is a type of spin bowling in cricket. A bowler who uses this technique is called an off spinner. Off spinners bowl with their right-arm and a finger spin action. Their normal delivery is called an off break, which spins from left to r ...
on the advice of his coach.
He was later coached by former spinner
Sunil Subramaniam and mentored by former cricketer
W V Raman.
He had represented the Indian under-17 team as an
opening batter.
Ashwin resides in
West Mambalam, Chennai.
He married his childhood friend, Prithi Narayanan, on 13 November 2011. They have two daughters.
International career
2010–11: Debut and early years
On the back of his impressive performance in the
2010 Indian Premier League, Ashwin was selected for the
Indian squad that toured
Zimbabwe
file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map
Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...
for a
tri-series in May 2010. He made his
ODI debut against
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
on 5 June 2010, scoring a 32–ball 38 and taking 2/50 in that match, which India lost. His
T20I debut came a week later, against
Zimbabwe
file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map
Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...
at
Harare
Harare ( ), formerly Salisbury, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Zimbabwe. The city proper has an area of , a population of 1,849,600 as of the 2022 Zimbabwe census, 2022 census and an estimated 2,487,209 people in its metrop ...
where he took 1/22 in four overs in an Indian win.
Ashwin was part of the squad for the
2010 Asia Cup, which India won. He was also part of the
tri-series against New Zealand and Sri Lanka, but did not get a game, with
Pragyan Ojha and
Ravindra Jadeja being preferred. In October 2010, Ashwin was selected to play in the three-match
home ODI series against
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, in which he took 1/34 in nine overs in an Indian victory in the only match he played. Ashwin played in all five matches of the
home series against
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
in November–December 2010 in which India completed a 5–0
whitewash
Whitewash, calcimine, kalsomine, calsomine, asbestis or lime paint is a type of paint made from slaked lime ( calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)2) or chalk (calcium carbonate, CaCO3), sometimes known as "whiting". Various other additives are sometimes ...
with Ashwin ending up as the leading wicket-taker with 11 wickets at an average of 21.90. At the conclusion of the series, then Indian captain
Gautam Gambhir called him "the find" of the series and hailed his bowling during the
powerplay overs. Despite being in the squad, Ashwin did not make it to the playing eleven in any of the five ODIs on the
South African tour in 2010, with
Harbhajan Singh preferred.
Ashwin was part of the 15-member
2011 Cricket World Cup
The 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup was the tenth Cricket World Cup. It was played in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, while the latter hosted World Cup matches for the first time. India won the tournament, defeating Sri Lanka by six wickets in the 2 ...
squad, with Harbhajan and
Piyush Chawla being the other two specialist spinners in the squad. Ashwin played only two matches in World cup, which India won, defeating Sri Lanka in the finals. Ashwin played the fourth and fifth matches of India's
tour of West Indies in June–July 2011, picking up just one wicket.
Ashwin was retained in the limited-overs squad for the
England tour and emerged as India's best bowler of the series, taking six wickets at an average of 25.16. When
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
toured India in October 2011, Ashwin was the second-highest wicket-taker of the series, with ten wickets in a 5–0 victory.
2011–12: Test debut and rise
In November 2011, West Indies
toured India for three Tests and five ODIs, with Ashwin and Ojha being the only two specialist spinners in the squad. Ashwin made his Test debut in the first match at
Delhi
Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...
, earning his cap from
Sachin Tendulkar
Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar (; ; born 24 April 1973) is an Indian former international cricketer who List of India national cricket captains#Men's cricket, captained the Indian national team. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest cricketer ...
.
He took 3/81 in the first innings and picked a
fifer with 6/47 in the second, helping India win the match and was awarded the
man of the match
In team sport, a player of the match award (also known as man of the match or woman of the match) is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chose ...
, becoming the third Indian player to win the award on Test debut. He picked four wickets in the second Test at
Kolkata
Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...
, where India registered an innings victory. In the third Test at Mumbai, he took 5/156 and scored his maiden international century in India's first innings, thus becoming only the third Indian to score a century and take a five-wicket haul in the same Test and the first since 1962. The match ended in a draw with the scores level, and was awarded the man of the match as well as the man of the series for his all-round performance. Ashwin also featured in four matches of the subsequent ODI series and took four wickets at an average of 49.00.
Ashwin was part of the squad that toured
Australia in 2011-12. He played in three Tests on the tour, taking just nine wickets at an average of more than 62. He also featured in the subsequent
triangular CB Series against Australia and Sri Lanka and took seven wickets in as many matches at 43.42. In March 2012, he took five wickets in three matches of the
2012 Asia Cup in
Bangladesh
Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...
. He had a quiet
tour of Sri Lanka in July–August 2012, taking five wickets at 39.40 in the five-match ODI series and 1/22 in the one-off T20I.
2012–15: Middle years and consolidation
Ashwin returned to form during the two-match
home Test series against New Zealand. In the first Test at
Hyderabad
Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...
, he claimed 6/31 and 6/54, helping India seal an innings victory and was named the man of the match with his match figures of 12/85, bettering
S. Venkataraghavan's 12/152 for the best figures by an Indian bowler against New Zealand in Tests. In the second match at
Bangalore
Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...
, his efforts of 5/69 in the second innings helped India win the match and the series 2–0. He was awarded man of the series for his tally of 18 wickets at an average of 13.11. Ashwin played four matches in the
2012 ICC World Twenty20
The 2012 ICC World Twenty20 was the fourth edition of the Men's T20 World Cup, formerly known as the ICC World Twenty20, an international Twenty20 International, Twenty20 cricket tournament that took place in Sri Lanka from 18 September to 7 O ...
in Sri Lanka and took five wickets at an economy rate of 6 and an average of 19.
During the first Test of
England's tour of India in late 2012, Ashwin became the fastest Indian to record 50 wickets in Test cricket as he overhauled the milestone in his ninth game. India eventually lost the series 2–1 in which Ashwin managed to take only 14 wickets in the four Tests at an average of 52.64. However, he scored 243 runs, averaging 60.75, including two fifties, and finished as India's second best batsman of the series. In the three-match ODI series against Pakistan and the five-match ODI series against England, he took three wickets at 43.33 and seven wickets at 35.71, respectively.
In February 2013, Ashwin worked with Sunil Subramaniam to make changes to his bowling ahead of the four-match Test series against Australia, including shortening of his bowling stride.
Ashwin had a successful series in the Australia's
four-Test tour of India in February–March 2013. In the first Test at
Chennai
Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...
, his home ground, he took 7/103 and 5/95, leading India to a comfortable eight-wicket victory. He had a haul of 5/63 in the second innings of the second Test at Hyderabad, where India registered an innings win and took four wickets in the third Test at
Mohali
Mohali, officially Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar or Ajitgarh, is a planned city in the Mohali district in Punjab, India, Punjab, India, which is an administrative and a commercial hub lying south-west of Chandigarh. It is the headquarters of the M ...
, where India sealed the series with a six-wicket victory. In the last match at Delhi, he took 5/57 and 2/55 in another Indian win which completed a 4–0 whitewash of Australia. During the match, Ashwin surpassed
Anil Kumble
Anil Kumble (; born 17 October 1970) is a former Indian cricketer, captain, coach and commentator who played Test cricket, Test and One Day International cricket for his national team over an international career of 18 years. A right-arm leg sp ...
's record of 27 wickets for the most wickets by an Indian bowler in a four-Test series. Ashwin finished the series as the leading wicket-taker with a tally of 29 wickets at 20.10 and won the Man of the Series award. It was the first time India won four or more Tests in a series and the first time Australia was whitewashed since 1969–70.
Ashwin was part of the Indian team that won the
2013 ICC Champions Trophy in England. His match figures of 2/15 in four overs in the 20-overs-a-side
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...
helped India restrict England to 124/8 and win the match by five runs. He had a total of eight wickets from five matches at an average of 22.62, conceding 4.41 runs per over, and ended as the joint-fifth highest wicket-taker of the tournament and was named in the 'Team of the Tournament'. With nine wickets in six matches, Ashwin finished as the leading wicket-taker of the
home ODI series against Australia in October–November 2013, which India won 3–2.
On India's
tour of South Africa, Ashwin had a difficult time with the ball, picking up only one wicket across three ODIs and went wicketless in his 42 overs in the first Test at
Johannesburg
Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...
, following which, he was dropped for the second Test. In early 2014, Ashwin's overseas struggles continued during the
New Zealand tour, where he managed to bag a solitary wicket in the five-match ODI series, which India lost 4–0. However, in the third ODI, coming in to bat with India at 146/5 in pursuit of 315, he scored his maiden ODI fifty of 65 runs from 46 balls. He shared a 38-run partnership with Dhoni and an 85-run seventh wicket stands with Jadeja, as the match eventually ended in a tie. In the two-match Test series that followed, Jadeja was preferred over Ashwin as the lone spinner in the playing eleven.
Ashwin was back among the wickets when India went to Bangladesh for the
2014 Asia Cup and the
2014 ICC World Twenty20
The 2014 ICC World Twenty20 was the fifth edition of the Men's T20 World Cup, formerly known as the ICC World Twenty20, an international Twenty20 cricket tournament, that took place in Bangladesh from 16 March to 6 April 2014. It was played in t ...
. He took nine wickets in four matches of the Asia Cup and finished as the joint-third highest wicket-taker of the tournament. He played a vital role in India's unbeaten run to the World Twenty20 final. His tally of 11 wickets in six matches at an average of 11.27 and an economy rate of 5.35 put him joint third on the list of most wickets in the tournament. He was named in the "Team of the Tournament" for the 2014 T20 World Cup by the ICC and ESPNcricinfo.
Ashwin was part of the Indian team that toured
England in 2014. He played only two matches in the five Test series, scoring 40 and 46 not out but going wicketless in the fourth Test and taking three wickets in the last match, both of which ended in defeats.
India won the ODI series that followed 3–1. with Ashwin taking seven wickets from four matches at an average of 24.85 and an economy rate of less than 4.5. India whitewashed Sri Lanka in a
five-match ODI series in November 2014, in which Ashwin took 6 wickets to his name at 33.33. Ashwin was not part of the first Test of
India's tour of Australia in December 2014. He returned to the playing eleven in the second test and took a total of 12 wickets at an average of 48.66 in the remaining three matches.
2015–19: Consistency and rise to stardom
Ashwin was selected to represent India for the second consecutive
ODI World cup held in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
and
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
in 2015. He took 13 wickets in 8 matches in India's run to the semi-finals and was named on the bench in the 'Team of the tournament'. In the
2015 three-match series against Sri Lanka, he finished with 21 wickets and, in the process, broke the record for the most wickets by an Indian bowler in a series against Sri Lanka, winning the Man of the Series award. These efforts led him to achieve the top ranking in
ICC men's rankings for bowlers in tests for the year 2015.
In November 2015, Ashwin was a star performer throughout the
Freedom Trophy Test series against South Africa in India. During the course of the series, he became the fastest Indian to reach 150 wickets in Test cricket. In the third Test in
Nagpur
Nagpur (; ISO 15919, ISO: ''Nāgapura'') is the second capital and third-largest city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is called the heart of India because of its central geographical location. It is the largest and most populated city i ...
, he picked up 12 wickets for 98 runs to hand South Africa their first away series loss in nine years, with his career-best figures of 7/66 in the second innings bowling the visitors out for 185 to give India a 2–0 series win.
He was named in the
ICC Men's Test Team of the Year in 2015.
Ashwin was part of the Indian squad that won the
2016 Asia Cup, in which he took four wickets in as many matches. He had a brilliant series during the
2016 tour to West Indies where he scored 235 runs with two centuries and took 17 wickets in four tests, with India winning the series 2–0. In
New Zealand's tour of India in 2016, Ashwin took 27 wickets in three Tests, including a career-best of 7 for 59 in an innings. Ashwin followed it up with an all round performance, taking 28 wickets and scoring 306 runs in the five match test series against
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, which India won 4–0.
Overall, Ashwin had a brilliant home season in 2016, taking 82 wickets and thus breaking the record for the most wickets taken in a single domestic season.
He also became the second Indian to score 500 runs and take 50 wickets in a single season.
For his performances in 2016, he was named in the ICC Men's Test Team of the Year. In December 2016, the
International Cricket Council
The International Cricket Council (ICC) is the global Sports governing body, governing body of cricket. It was founded as the Imperial Cricket Conference in 1909 by representatives from Australia, England, and South Africa. In 1965, the body wa ...
named Ashwin the "ICC Cricketer of the Year" and the "ICC Test Cricketer of the Year" for 2016. In the process, he became the third Indian to win the
Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy
The Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy is a Cricket trophy that is awarded annually by the International Cricket Council to the ICC Men's Cricketer of the Year. It is considered to be the most prestigious of the annual ICC Awards and was first awarded ...
for the "ICC Cricketer of the Year" after Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar, and also the second cricketer ever after Dravid to win the two awards in the same year.
In February 2017, Ashwin took 21 wickets in the four-match series against
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, which India won 2–1. Ashwin was part of the limited overs squad that toured
West Indies
The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...
in June 2017 after which he became a player who played exclusively in tests.
In the
Indian tour of Sri Lanka in August 2017, Ashwin was the leading wicket-taker with 17 wickets, leading India to a 3–0 victory. Ashwin was again the leading wicket-taker with 12 wickets in
Sri Lanka's return tour in December 2017, which India won 1–0. In 2017, he was named in the Test team of the year for the third consecutive year by the ICC. In 2018, India played most of the test matches away from home, with the team touring
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
and
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
. Ashwin played six tests, taking 18 wickets, while India lost both the series.
In the first test against England on 1 August 2018 at
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
, Ashwin took seven wickets in the match including figures of 4/62 in the first innings, which is his best bowling performance in England. Ashwin took nine wickets in the 2–0 victory over
West Indies in India in October 2018.
2019–24: Final years
In the 2019–20 home season, India played
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
and
Bangladesh
Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...
, winning all three series. Ashwin was a key performer in the wins, taking 20 wickets across five matches.
Ashwin played one match in the
Indian tour of New Zealand, which was won by New Zealand.
In the following series in the
Indian tour of Australia, India won a historic 2–1 victory, with Ashwin taking 12 wickets across three matches.
In December 2020, he was named in the
ICC Men's Test Team of the Decade for 2011-20 and was announced as one of the nominees for the
ICC Male Cricketer of the Decade.
During
England's tour of India in 2021, which India won 3–1, Ashwin took 32 wickets and scored 189 runs, including a century, in four tests. During the series, he became the fastest Indian bowler to reach the landmark of 400 Test wickets and the fourth Indian, after
Kapil Dev
Kapildev Ramlal Nikhanj (pronunciation: Help:IPA/Hindi and Urdu, əpil deːʋborn 6 January 1959) is an Indian former cricket team captain. He is regarded as one of the greatest all-rounders in the history of cricket, he was a Fast bowling, ...
,
Anil Kumble
Anil Kumble (; born 17 October 1970) is a former Indian cricketer, captain, coach and commentator who played Test cricket, Test and One Day International cricket for his national team over an international career of 18 years. A right-arm leg sp ...
and
Harbhajan Singh, to achieve the milestone. Ashwin was the lead wicket-taker with four wickets in the
2021 ICC World Test Championship final
The final of the 2019–2021 ICC World Test Championship, the inaugural ICC World Test Championship, was played from 18 to 23 June 2021 at the Rose Bowl (cricket ground), Rose Bowl, Southampton, England, between India national cricket team, India ...
loss to New Zealand in June 2021.
In September 2021, Ashwin earned a surprise recall to the Indian squad for the
2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup, more than four years since he played a T20 international. He made the comeback in white-ball cricket in India's third match of the tournament against
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...
and bowled a good spell taking two wickets for 14 runs in four overs. Ashwin continued to play T20 international matches across 2021 and 2022.
He was also named in the Indian squad, which reached the semi-finals of the
2022 ICC Men's T20 World Cup
The 2022 ICC Men's T20 World Cup was the eighth edition of the Men's T20 World Cup, formerly known as the ICC World Twenty20. It was played in Australia from 16 October to 13 November 2022. In the final, England cricket team, England beat Pakist ...
, playing all six matches and taking six wickets.
In the 2021–22 season, India won the home series against
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
and
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
where Ashwin ended up as the leading wicket taker in both series. His consistent performances in test cricket enabled him to be named in the ICC Test team of the year for 2021.
In January 2022,
India toured South Africa where Ashwin took only three wickets in as many matches as India lost 1–2.
Ashwin was once again the leading wicket taker in the
West Indies
The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...
with 15 wickets in a 1–0 victory. In the
Australian tour to India in March 2023, Ashwin took 25 wickets in four matches to lead India to a series victory. On the back of the victory against Australia, India qualified for the second consecutive
ICC World Test Championship final. Ashwin was not part of the playing eleven in the final, which India lost to Australia.
Ashwin earned a surprise recall to the ODI side for the
series against Australia prior to the
2023 Cricket World Cup
The 2023 ICC Men's Cricket World Cup was the 13th edition of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup, a quadrennial One Day International (ODI) cricket tournament organized by the International Cricket Council (ICC). It was hosted from 5 October to 19 ...
, in which he took four wickets from two matches.
He was subsequently named as a part of the Indian squad for the World Cup. In the World Cup, where India finished runners-up, he played his lone match against Australia and had the best economy rate of 3.4. On 16 February 2024, during the third test of the
England tour of India, Ashwin took his 500th test wicket, becoming the second Indian and ninth overall to achieve the feat.
In the fifth and final test match of the same series, Ashwin played his 100th Test match and finished as the leading wicket taker of the series with 26 wickets.
During the Indian home season in 2023–24, Ashwin scored a century and took six wickets in the first test of the series against
Bangladesh
Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...
in Chennai. This was the fourth time he did a double of scoring a century and taking more than five wickets in a test match, and became the first cricketer to achieve the feat twice at the same venue. He took his 37th five wicket haul in the second innings, the second most in test cricket and became the oldest Indian cricketer to take a five wicket haul. He finished the series as the joint highest wicket taker and won a record equaling eleventh Man of the Series award.
Ashwin played his last test match during
India's tour of Australia in December 2024. He announced his retirement from international cricket on 18 December 2024.
Domestic career
Tamil Nadu
Ashwin represented
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...
in domestic cricket.
Ashwin made his
first class debut for Tamil Nadu in the
Ranji trophy
The Ranji Trophy is a premier domestic first-class cricket championship played in India and organized annually by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The teams representing regional and state cricket associations participate. BCCI ...
match against
Haryana
Haryana () is a States and union territories of India, state located in the northern part of India. It was carved out after the linguistic reorganisation of Punjab, India, Punjab on 1 November 1966. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with les ...
in 2006 at the age of 20, taking six wickets.
He made his
List A
List A cricket is a classification of the Limited overs cricket, limited-overs (one-day) form of the sport of cricket, with games lasting up to eight hours. List A cricket includes One Day International (ODI) matches and various domestic competit ...
debut in 2007 against
Andhra
Andhra Pradesh (ISO: , , AP) is a state on the east coast of southern India. It is the seventh-largest state and the tenth-most populous in the country. Telugu is the most widely spoken language in the state, as well as its official lang ...
, taking two wickets. His
T20 debut came in a victory against Andhra in the interstate T20 tournament next month. He has represented the team in multiple seasons in the
Ranji Trophy
The Ranji Trophy is a premier domestic first-class cricket championship played in India and organized annually by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The teams representing regional and state cricket associations participate. BCCI ...
. Ashwin captained the Tamil Nadu team that won the
Vijay Hazare Trophy in 2008-09 and reached the semi-finals in 2015. He was part of the team that reached the final of the tournament in 2019. Ashwin has also played for
South zone team. Ashwin captained the India A side in the
Deodhar Trophy in 2018. Ashwin played for
Chemplast in the
TNCA first division league until 2018 when he moved to Mylapore RC. He signed on to represent
India Cements
The India Cements Limited is a cement manufacturing company based in Chennai. It is the 9th largest listed cement company in India by revenue. The company was headed by former International Cricket Council chairman and Board of Control for Crick ...
in 2020.
TNPL
Ashwin was drafted in as the captain of the
Dindigul Dragons franchise for the
inaugural
In government and politics, inauguration is the process of swearing a person into office and thus making that person the incumbent. Such an inauguration commonly occurs through a formal ceremony or special event, which may also include an inau ...
season of the
Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) T20 tournament. He has represented the same franchise for eight seasons, leading them to the title in the
2024 season and two finals in
2018
Events January
* January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency.
* January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
and
2019
This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year.
Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...
.
County career
In August 2017, Ashwin made his English county debut with
Worcestershire
Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...
against
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...
, taking three wickets. He again returned to play for Worcestershire for the
2018
Events January
* January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency.
* January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
season. In 2019,
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. Th ...
signed Ashwin for the second half of the
2019 County Championship season.
Ashwin made his debut against
Essex
Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...
at Trent Bridge and made significant contributions for the county, claiming 34 wickets and 339 runs in five matches.
Indian Premier League
Ashwin was signed as a domestic player by
Chennai Super Kings
The Chennai Super Kings, also known as CSK, are a professional Twenty20 cricket team based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, that competes in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The team was one of the eight debut franchises when the league was establ ...
(CSK) for the inaugural season of the
Indian Premier League
The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a professional Twenty20 (T20) cricket league in India, organised by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Founded in 2007, it features ten city-based Professional sports league organization, fr ...
(IPL) in 2008 Indian Premier League, 2008. He made his debut for the Chennai Super Kings during the 2009 Indian Premier League, 2009 season and represented the team for eight consecutive seasons till 2015 Indian Premier League, 2015.
His break through season came in
2010
The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
when he took 13 wickets to help Chennai win their first IPL title and qualify for Champions League Twenty20.
Chennai won the Champions league title in 2010 with Ashwin being named player of the series. Ashwin was the fourth highest wicket taker with 20 wickets in the 2011 Indian Premier League season, helping Chennai win a second consecutive title. Ashwin won his second Champions League Twenty20 title in 2014 Champions League Twenty20, 2014 with CSK. Ashwin took 90 wickets from 97 matches in the IPL across eight seasons for the Super Kings.
Following the two-year suspension of Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals, two new franchises Rising Pune Supergiants and Gujarat Lions were established for the 2016 Indian Premier League season. Supergiants picked Ashwin as one of their five List of 2016 Indian Premier League personnel changes, draft picks on 15 December 2015 for .
He took ten wickets in the 2016 season before being ruled out of 2017 Indian Premier League, 2017 season due to an injury. In the List of 2018 Indian Premier League personnel changes, 2018 player auction, Ashwin was picked up by Punjab Kings for . He was appointed as captain of Punjab for the 2019 Indian Premier League, 2018 season.
In March 2019, in a match against Rajasthan Royals, Ashwin mankaded, ran out a batter "backing up" (Jos Buttler), reigniting a debate around the mode of dismissal. This ultimately led to a rule change by Marylebone Cricket Club, MCC that the Law on running out the non-striker would be moved into Law 38 (Run Out) rather than Law 41 (Unfair Play).
Ahead of the 2020 Indian Premier League, 2020 season, Ashwin was List of 2020 Indian Premier League personnel changes, traded to Delhi Capitals. He took 13 wickets in the season and was the fourth highest-wicket taker in the team. Delhi retained him for the 2021 Indian Premier League, 2021 season. In the 2022 IPL Auction, Ashwin was bought by the Rajasthan Royals for . During the group stage match against Lucknow Super Giants in the 2022 Indian Premier League, 2022 season, he tactically retired out in the 19th over, becoming the first cricketer in IPL to do so. He took 12 wickets and scored 191 runs to take Rajasthan to the finals of the 2022 season.
In April 2022, Ashwin became only the second off-spinner after
Harbhajan Singh to take 150 wickets in IPL and is the joint-fifth highest-wicket taker in the league alongside Sunil Narine with 180 wickets. In the List of 2025 Indian Premier League personnel changes, 2025 player auction, Ashwin was picked up by the Chennai Super Kings for .
Bowling style
Ashwin is widely regarded as one of the most prolific off spinners of all time. He produces several variations of the ball and flights the ball, thereby giving it more chance to spin and dip on the batsman. In addition to his normal off spin, off-breaks, he produces an arm ball and the carrom ball, the latter of which he uses frequently in the shorter formats. In IPL 2013, he bowled leg break, leg-breaks and googly as well. He evolved his carrom ball from the soduku ball, a finger-flicked legbreak used in tennis ball cricket on the streets of Chennai.
However, he has stated in an interview that he refrains from bowling the doosra as it requires him to bend and straighten his arm which he finds difficult to do.
Ashwin's childhood coach Sunil Subramaniam recalls Ashwin's early days at the TNCA Academy:
[...] what struck me was his intelligence. His use of angles, length and width of the crease. Also, guessing what a batsman was likely to do. And the kind of field placing that he is comfortable with. Those are the factors that struck me immediately – that this guy not only loves bowling, he also has a fair idea of what spin actually is. For somebody who started out at 18 or 19, I thought that was a big thing [...] Here is a guy who knew what the ball is supposed to do, where this guy is expected to play and what are the plans to keep that guy in check and put pressure on that guy. He was pretty clear at 18 itself.
Records and achievements
*Fastest to reach 250, 300 and 350 wickets in test cricket (in terms of matches)
*Fastest Indian to reach 50, 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, 350, 400, 450 and 500 test wickets (in terms of matches)
*Only Indian cricketer to score a century and take five wickets in the same Test match on four separate instances
*First Indian to take 50 T20I wickets
*Most Man of the Series awards in tests (11)
*Second most five wicket hauls in tests (37) and fastest to 25 five wicket hauls
*Second highest wicket taker in tests for India (537)
*Second Indian to score 500 runs and take 50 wickets in a calendar year (2016)
*Highest wicket-taker in a single season (82)
*Most dismissals of left-handers in tests
*Second Indian bowler to take 300 Test wickets at home
*Second Indian to take 750 international wickets and third Indian to take 700 international wickets
*One of the three all rounders to achieve the double of 3000 runs and 500 wickets in tests
*Most wickets in India (383)
*Second highest ever rating points by an Indian bowler ever in Tests in the ICC rankings (904)
Honours
India
* Asia Cup: 2010 Asia Cup, 2010, 2016 Asia Cup, 2016
* Cricket World Cup: 2011 Cricket World Cup, 2011
* ICC Champions Trophy: 2013 ICC Champions Trophy, 2013
Chennai Super Kings
* List of Indian Premier League seasons and results, Indian Premier League:
2010
The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
,
2011
The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...
* Champions League Twenty20, Champions League: 2010 Champions League Twenty20, 2010, 2014 Champions League Twenty20, 2014
Individual
* Polly Umrigar Award: 2012-13
*
Arjuna award
The Arjuna Award, officially known as Arjuna Awards given for Outstanding Performance in Sports and Games, is the second-highest sporting honour of India, the highest being the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. The award is named after Arjun ...
: 2015
* Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy, ICC Men's Cricketer of the Year: 2016
*
ICC Men's Test Cricketer of the Year: 2016
*
ICC Men's Test Team of the Year: 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2021
* CEAT International Cricketer of the Year: 2016–17
*
ICC Men's Test Team of the Decade: 2011-20
* ICC Awards#Monthly awards, ICC Men's Player of the Month: February, 2021
*
Padma Shri
The Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī'', lit. 'Lotus Honour'), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. In ...
: 2025
Others
In March 2025, the Greater Chennai Corporation approved the renaming of Ramakrishnapuram first street in
West Mambalam, where Ashwin resides, as Ravichandran Ashwin street in his honour.
Career statistics
Ashwin has scored more than 4000 runs in international cricket. He has scored six centuries and 14 half-centuries in Tests to go with a single half-century in ODIs.
Ashwin has taken more than 700 wickets in international cricket and more than 500 wickets in Tests, placing him amongst the top ten wicket takers in Tests.
Ashwin has been more prolific in home conditions, where he has taken more than 350 wickets at an average of under 22.
Ashwin scored a century and taken five wickets in the same Test match on three separate instances.
He scored more than 500 runs and took more than 50 wickets in 2016, becoming the second Indian after
Kapil Dev
Kapildev Ramlal Nikhanj (pronunciation: Help:IPA/Hindi and Urdu, əpil deːʋborn 6 January 1959) is an Indian former cricket team captain. He is regarded as one of the greatest all-rounders in the history of cricket, he was a Fast bowling, ...
to do so.
Ashwin has won eleven Man of the Series awards in Tests, the most for any player along with
Muttiah Muralitharan
Deshabandu Muttiah Muralitharan (born 1972) is a Sri Lankan cricket coach, businessman and former professional cricketer. Averaging over six wickets per Test match, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the ...
.
Centuries
Following is the list of the six centuries scored by Ashwin in international cricket.
Man of the Series
Following is the list of the man of the series awards won by Ashwin in international cricket.
In popular culture
Ashwin runs his own YouTube channel where he does analysis of cricket matches, interviews and movie reviews. Ashwin runs a cricket academy called "Gen-Next Cricket Institute" in Chennai where he mentors young kids. In 2016, Ashwin appeared in videos circulated by the Tamil Nadu State Election Commission to help create electoral awareness by encouraging voters to check whether their names were on the electoral roll.
In June 2024, Ashwin released his memoir titled ''I have the streets: A kutti cricket story'', which he had co-authored with sports writer Sidharth Monga.
See also
* List of India cricketers who have taken five-wicket hauls on Test debut
* List of bowlers who have taken 300 or more wickets in Test cricket
References
External links
*
*
R Ashwin's profile page on Wisden
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ashwin, Ravichandran
1986 births
Living people
India Test cricketers
India One Day International cricketers
India Twenty20 International cricketers
21st-century Indian sportsmen
Tamil Nadu cricketers
South Zone cricketers
India Blue cricketers
India Red cricketers
India Green cricketers
Chennai Super Kings cricketers
Cricketers who have taken five wickets on Test debut
Cricketers at the 2011 Cricket World Cup
Cricketers at the 2015 Cricket World Cup
Cricketers at the 2023 Cricket World Cup
Indian cricketers
Cricketers from Chennai
Padma Seshadri Bala Bhavan schools alumni
Rising Pune Supergiant cricketers
ICC Cricketer of the Year
Worcestershire cricketers
Indian expatriate cricketers in England
Punjab Kings cricketers
Tamil sportspeople
Delhi Capitals cricketers
Recipients of the Arjuna Award
Nottinghamshire cricketers
Rajasthan Royals cricketers
Recipients of the Padma Shri in sports