Basit Ali On Ashwin Retiring Mid BGT Series: Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali was left disappointed in Indian Cricket Team captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Gautam Gambhir for allowing spin all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin to retire from international cricket mid-series in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024.
We are now three matches deep in the five-game Australia vs India Test series. After the draw in the third match at the Gabba in Brisbane, the series stands at 1-1.
But this is not what has been the centre of attention in the cricket world for the past 24 hours, as legendary spin bowler Ashwin announced his retirement from all international cricket following the draw in Brisbane.
While the news broke out before the end of the match, ‘anna’ announced it to the world himself right after the match ended in a press conference. The 38-year-old just announced his retirement, thanked his team and the BCCI, refused to take any questions, and walked into the sunset.
Ashwin will retire as one of the greatest spin bowlers ever in international cricket, especially in Test cricket, where he retired with 537 wickets in 106 matches at an average of 24.
While the entire world is showering the legendary spinner with praise and reminiscing about his awesome career, some fans are, understandably, not too happy. Ashwin himself claimed in his retirement speech that he has some cricket left in him, this being the reason that he will continue to play club cricket.
But some people question why a personality and player like him is leaving international cricket, that too in the middle of a crucial series.
Basit Ali On Ashwin Retiring Mid BGT Series
One of the people raising questions about this is former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali, who believes that the Indian Cricket Team’s top brass should have convinced Ashwin to remain available for at least the two remaining Tests in Melbourne and Sydney. In a video on his YouTube channel, Ali has this to say about this situation:
“I saw his press conference, and it looked like he didn’t speak about many things. I can guarantee that Virat Kohli wouldn’t have let Ashwin retire mid-series if he were the captain.”
Ali suggested that Ravichandran Ashwin should have retired following the disappointing Test series against New Zealand in November, saying,
“Ravichandran Ashwin should have retired after the New Zealand series itself, as Washington Sundar was called up for the second Test, or it should have been after this five-match series. I think letting Ashwin retire after three Tests was a bad decision from Rohit Sharma and Gautam Gambhir. They should have sat with him and made him understand that India needed him for these two Tests.”
With two Test matches remaining in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, the India vs Australia Test series has now entered its endgame, with these two matches not only deciding this series’ result but also the situation of the World Test Championship final in June 2025.
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