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'Don't know if Dravid brainwashed me…': Ashwin unplugged after record spell vs West Indies
Ashwin said he is unsure whether Rahul Dravid's words "brainwashed" him into believing in the India head coach's theory.
Ravichandran Ashwin is not among those who will "sulk" after not finding a place in India's XI in the WTC final despite being the No.1-ranked bowler in ICC Test rankings. He is not even the one to rejoice at becoming the bowler with five-wicket hauls among active cricketers in the world. A month away from turning 37, all Ashwin cares about is the team's success. His individual performance doesn't matter that much as long as the team wins. This is nothing unusual for an individual to say in a team sport but considering the impact that Ashwin has had over the last 12-13 years and the lows he has seen in spite of that, is what makes his statement special.
The veteran India off-spinner once again showed his class on the first day of the India vs West Indies 1st Test on Dominica. Introduced into the attack in the first hour of play by captain Rohit Sharma, Ashwin dismissed both the West Indies openers - Kraigg Brathwaite and Tagnarine Chanderpaul - to push the visitors on the backfoot.
Ashwin picked up a couple of more wickets in the second session to become the third Indian after Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh to claim 700 international wickets across formats. He wrapped up the final West Indies wicket in the post-Tea session to complete his 33rd five-wicket haul - the sixth most among all cricketers to have ever played the game.
Ashwin's 5/60 helped India bowl West Indies out for 150 on Day 1 of the series opener. Speaking to reports after the first day's play, Ashwin, who also has five Test hundreds to his name, said head coach Rahul Dravid had instilled this belief of team spirit in him.
‘Dravid says you won't remember the runs and wickets…': Ashwin
"Rahul bhai (India coach Rahul Dravid) always says it's not the wickets or the runs that you remember," Ashwin said. "The first time I met him as coach he made a statement and he said 'it's 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'.
Ashwin, also a master of words, said he is unsure whether Dravid's words "brainwashed" him into believing into that but he sure agrees with the former India captain.
"And I am totally behind that. I don’t 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 added.
