R Ashwin celebrates after completing his century.
Credit: PTI Photo
Chennai: R Ashwin loves cricket. He loves competition. He loves being the best at what he does. He loves talking about the sport. The love growing stronger and stronger especially considering he’s in the twilight of a stellar career.
All that passion was evident in the opening Test against Bangladesh at his beloved MA Chidambaram Stadium — his home ground — as he smashed a counter-attacking 113 off 133 balls that not only bailed India out of deep trouble but put them in a position of strength.
That knock, his sixth Test century and second at Chepauk, saw the just turned 38-year-old grinning from ear to ear. Arriving full of joie de vivre for a media activity at the end of Friday’s play, the off-spinning legend said pursuing excellence gives him happiness and that’s what keeps competitive fire burning bright inside him.
“Happiness,” said Ashwin even before the scribe could complete the question on how he keeps constantly delivering match-winning performances. “You want to be good. You excel, you feel happy at the end of the day. It drives me towards that. Every time I do well, it leaves me in a good, happy state of mind. That's what you get on this journey for. You want to do well. You want to excel on the global stage. People are watching you and you feel happy about it.”
A highly self-critical cricketer who sometimes gets panned by critics for overthinking, Ashwin said a changed calmer approach over the last few years has made a world of difference to his cricket. “I used to be critical. Not anymore. I have put a lot of pressure on myself. People have put pressure on me. I used to be happy about it. But it's not like that anymore.
“The most important thing for me is to enjoy my cricket. I want to play cricket with a smile on my face. I have promised myself 4-5 years ago that I will not respond to anyone. I have promised myself that I will play for my happiness. I have been maintaining that promise till now.”
When Ashwin walked out to bat on Thursday, India were staring down the barrel at 144/6. Ashwin then took everyone by surprise with an ultra-aggressive approach, something that he unleashes only rarely even in T20s. Ashwin attributed his recent outing with Dindigul Dragons in the Tamil Nadu Premier League for the blazing innings.
“Surprisingly enough, I found myself in a really good, happy space. Like I said, in the past, the thing is I have explained this again and again. Bowling and batting are very separate sports in the same game. One is done consciously while the other one is done subconsciously. So, for me to compartmentalise both has taken its own due. At this stage, I am able to sequence that and split both of them and see as a cricketer. So, when I walked there, the only one thing I wanted to do was settle down my game. I played some cricket leading up to it.”