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R Ashwin's reaction to 'most successful all-rounder after Kapil Dev' question is pure gold and full of class
If there is one India all-rounder who has occasionally been associated with Kapil in terms of numbers, it's Ravichandran Ashwin.
Kapil Dev will go down in history as arguably India's single-greatest cricketer of all time. Sure, Indian cricket has produced some of the most path-breaking and legendary players, but just for the impact Kapil created, and the manner he made an entire nation dream and transformed the popularity of the sport, India's first-ever World Cup winning captain sits on a pedestal no other Indian cricketer comes close to. Let's face it, ever since he retired, Team India is yet to find an all-rounder of Kapil's calibre. One who has played over 130 Tests and 200 ODIs, never bowled a no-ball and scored over 9000 runs and take almost 700 international wickets. Irfan Pathan was a once potential candidate, Hardik Pandya’s exploits gave birth to the next Kapil Dev debates, but no one has come close.
However, if there is one India all-rounder who has occasionally been associated with Kapil in terms of numbers, it's Ravichandran Ashwin. With 449 wickets and over 3000 runs in Tests, Ashwin is statistically India's second-best Test cricketer of all time, behind the one and only Kapil, who picked 434 Test wickets and scores 5248 runs. While Ashwin eclipsed Kapil's record with the ball, becoming India's second-highest wicket-taker in Tests, he has a bit of a distance to go with the bat, but the fact that he was mentioned in the same line as Kapil Dev, when the New Indian Express asked 'You are now the most successful all-rounder after Kapil Dev' as part of a question, Ashwin said it was a privilege.
"I don't want to sound too humble or too sceptical. But when you do something in your life, you want to be the best at what you want to do, right? Kapil Dev is not just a great Indian cricketer, but is one of the greatest cricketers the world has seen. And if you take up the bat and the ball, I suggest, any child, any kid that is taking the ball or the bat today must be aspiring to be the best in the world. It doesn't matter who's done it in the past, you have to want to be the best in the world," Ashwin replied.
With the bat, Ashwin has been part of some of India's famous results. He batted with a bad back to save India the famous Sydney Test that ended in a draw. More recently, he hit the winning runs against Pakistan at the T20 World Cup and then did the same against Bangladesh in the second Test in Mirpur, Dhaka. Clearly, Ashwin is a man for the big occasions and he takes pride is excelling when the odds are against him and his team.
"When you play for India, expectations are going to be there. You're bound to have expectations. But you can't allow that to bog yourself down. You know, I am someone who lives for the big moments and pressure moments. So for me, anytime there is a big match, any time there's a lot of pressure I really enjoy it. So, I'm looking forward to the pressure," added Ashwin.
