'Ashwin a bit frustrated. Told he wasn't going to play…': Ex-Australia cricketers start instant retirement speculations

The former Aussie players started playing the speculation game on Ravichandran Ashwin's sudden retirement midway through the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Former Australian cricketers Brett Lee and Brad Haddin gave their takes on Ravichandran Ashwin's sudden retirement midway through the Border-Gavaskar Trophy after the Brisbane Test. Ashwin's decision came out as a shocker for some as not many thought he would bid adieu to international cricket during the middle of the series which is levelled at 1-1 with two matches left.

Ravichandran Ashwin finished his Test legacy with 537 wickets from 106 matches. (PTI)

The veteran spinner missed out on playing XIs of the Perth and Brisbane Tests, while there wasn't much on offer from the surface for a spinner when he got the chance at Adelaide. He claimed one wicket on his last Test of a glorious career, and Mitchell Marsh became his final victim in international cricket.

The former Aussie players started playing the speculation game on Ashwin's retirement. Lee suggested that the ace spinner may been told by the Indian management that he wouldn't be in contention to get a chance in the remaining two Tests, which led Ashwin to take the retirement call.

“I think the last time a spinner retired through a series (in Australia) was Graeme Swann. He may have been told that he’s not going to play any further part in this series, and rightly so, (he) just decided to go out on his own terms,” said Lee on Fox Cricket.

Ashwin was one of the strongest pillars of India's domination in red-ball cricket over the past decade. He finished his Test legacy with 537 wickets from 106 matches, which is the second highest by an Indian bowler behind Anil Kumble's 619. The New Zealand series, at home this year, was one of the lowest points in Ashwin's career when he ended with nine wickets from three games, with two played on tailor-made surfaces in Pune and Mumbai.

‘Ashwin may have been a bit frustrated…’: Haddin

Haddin, former Aussie wicketkeeper, lavished praise on Ashwin, but he also feels that the spinner would open up more on his retirement decision in the coming days.

“More will come out when Ashwin has his opportunity to speak; just reading between the lines, it looked like he may have been a bit frustrated with the spinning options that they’ve changed in the first three Test matches. To me, he was a student of the game (and) always looking at ways to get better … he’s earned the right,” Haddin told Fox Cricket after the end of the Test match.