India vs Bangladesh: Birthday boy Ravichandran Ashwin braces for 'home' Test

At 38, star offie knows first Test vs Bangladesh could be his last at Chepauk
CHENNAI: As an under-14 cricketer, Ravichandran Ashwin was once told by a coach - midway through a game against Karnataka in Chennai - that it was not necessary for him to turn up the next day. The harsh words could have broken the kid, but it didn't. He fought on, and in his own words, "embraced rejection".

Now, as Ashwin turned 38 on Tuesday, he is preparing to take the field at MA Chidambaram ground, maybe for one last time in a Test at a venue he has always called home.

Test cricket normally returns to the city once every three years and given India's home schedule, Ashwin may just be 41 before this historic venue gets another five-day game.

The master offie, who now has 516 Test wickets, aspires to break Anil Kumble's India record of 619. But for that, his knee, which has troubled him on and off, has to hold steady.

It won't be a surprise if the Test match against Bangladesh becomes Ashwin's last at Chepauk, even though all his fans would love to believe it isn't.

Last March, Ashwin was felicitated at the lawns of the MAC complex for playing 100 Tests and completing 500 wickets.

"It is difficult for me to explain what this ground means to me. I used to come here as a kid to watch cricket. And I have had so many memories of playing here, this is truly my home," an emotional Ashwin had said on that Saturday afternoon.

In six months' time, Ashwin will be out on the field again leading the Indian spin-attack, a task he has done so brilliantly over the years. By the looks of it, the pitch may not be a spinner's paradise and the master offie is leaving no stone unturned to dish out a performance to remember.

For the last two days in practice, he has been at it both with bat and ball, toiling it out under the hot sun. On Tuesday, after a long bowling session, Ashwin probably felt he needed to work on his length.

With new bowling coach Morne Morkel in tow, he shifted to another pitch, marked the right area to bowl at, and tried to keep hitting the length with regularity.

For now, he has the Bangladesh batters in mind, but 10 years ago it was at this venue that Ashwin virtually sealed the No. 1 off-spinner's spot in Tests ahead of the ageing Harbhajan Singh.

The Chennai man was going through a rough patch at that stage and it was absolutely crucial for him to deliver against Michael Clarke's Australia.

On a slightly dry pitch, Ashwin was brilliant in the first innings, taking 7/103 and his match haul of 12 wickets turned the tide completely in favour of him.

The next high-point for Ashwin at this venue was with the bat against England in the second Test match in 2021. On a vicious turner in the second innings, the allrounder played one of his best knocks, smashing 106 that decisively turned the match in India's favour.

Those days, we were in between the first and second waves of Covid, yet the fans turned up, cheering for him.

"In Covid times, people came without worrying about their health and cheered for us. I dedicate this win to the Chennai crowd," Ashwin had said.

The master craftsman would love an encore, and fans will hope it won't be his last at home.


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