Roseau [Dominica], July 13 : Indian spin veteran Ravichandran Ashwin admitted that his omission from the ICC World Test Championship 2021-23 final against Australia served as an encouragement to return to his best form as he clinched a record-breaking 33rd five-wicket haul in the first Test against the West Indies on Wednesday.
The No.1 ranked Test bowler in the world rebounded quickly from missing out on selection for the one-off World Test Championship Final against Australia and ran riot on West Indies' batting line-up to get impressive figures of 5/60 that helped India to a dominant position at the conclusion of the opening day of the first Test in Dominica.
Ashwin got the big wicket of opener Tagenarine Chanderpaul for 12 early in his spell and then he made use of his experience to pry four further scalps in an excellent return to the Test side. West Indies were skittled for just 150 in their opening Test of the new World Test Championship cycle from 2023-25.
While Ashwin revealed he was still disappointed to have missed out on playing in the World Test Championship Final last month, it was important for him to move on quickly and showed he was still a force to be reckoned with at the Test level.
"As a cricketer when you have a shot at a WTC Final and to sit out is fine. For me, it was how do I respond and how do I make sure the dressing room is up and about," Ashwin said after India reached 80/0 at stumps on day one as quoted by ICC.
"Winning the WTC Final is the most important thing and it could have been a very high point in my career and I could have played a good role in it, but it was just unfortunate that it did not pan out and the first day left us too far behind in the shed."
"But what is the difference between me and another person that is going to sulk (about being dropped). All I would like to give my teammates and India cricket as a whole is some understanding and my best efforts on the field and that is where I would like to leave it," he concluded his point.
Ashwin's latest heroics against the West Indies now means he has 33 five-wicket hauls in Test cricket over his illustrious international career- the most among all active players - with his efforts in the Caribbean taking the right-armer past England veteran James Anderson and into sixth place on the overall list.
But Ashwin played down the record-breaking haul and said the only thing that matters for him now during the twilight of his career is helping his team to succeed on the field and making great memories.
"Rahul bhai (India coach Rahul Dravid) always says it is not the wickets or the runs that you remember," Ashwin said.
"The first time I met him as a coach he made a statement and he said 'it is not about how many runs you make and how many wickets you take, as you will forget about all of them and it is the great memories that you create as a team that will stick with you'."
"And I am totally behind that. I do not know if he has brainwashed me to do that, but from my point of view, I definitely think I have got a lot of gratitude and am very grateful for the journey and what the game has given me," he concluded.
Ashwin's journey thus far has had its fair share of ups and downs, the experienced spinner said that the various lows he has experienced have helped him stay at the top of his game and perform well for a prolonged period.
"There is no cricketer or human being in this world that has gone through the highs without the lows," Ashwin explained.
"When you have lows it gives you opportunity. You can either sulk, talk about it or complain about it and go along with it and go down, or you learn from it and I am someone who has constantly learned from my lows."
"The best thing that will happen today after this good day that I have had, is that I will have a good meal and a good talk to my family and go to bed and forget about it. When you have a good day you know you have had a good day, but there are days you can work hard and get better for tomorrow."
"It is not a journey that has been very easy, so for me, the journey has been draining but I am very thankful for all the lows that have come my way also because without the lows there are no highs in your life," he concluded.
Coming to the match, West Indies opted to bat first and was bundled out for 150 in their first innings. Athanaze (47) and skipper Braithwaite (20) were the only ones who could contribute something decent to the scoreboard. Ashwin's fifer and Ravindra Jadeja's figures of 3/26 were the standouts in the Indian bowling charts.
India ended the first day at 80/0, with skipper Rohit Sharma (30*) and debutant Yashasvi Jaiswal (40*) unbeaten.
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