"...very close to my heart", R Ashwin on his love for Indian cricket
Sep 22, 2023
Mohali (Punjab) [India], September 22 : Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has expressed his love for Indian cricket and is looking to bring something new to the team.
The door to India's World Cup squad opened for Ashwin after Axar Patel sustained an injury in the recently concluded Asia Cup.
The experienced spinner along with Washington Sundar was added to the squad to provide the 'Men In Blue' with further options and variety ahead of the World Cup.
Ashwin is likely to feature in India's ODI clash against Australia on Friday and he is looking to offer something new to the team and the new variation that he has been working on.
"It's a great opportunity for me, I want to bring something different to the table something different from my perspective, I have been working on some different angles because one day cricket isn't about spin anymore it's not about the angle of spin or anything," Ashwin said to BCCI.
He went on to express his love for Indian cricket and asserted that he would be happy to contribute in any way.
"Indian cricket is very close to my heart. I am not a man of tattoos but the tattoo is well inside my heart. Whatever it is I am going to be with or not with the team, I will be playing with good vibes and watching with close vibes and if at all I get a chance to contribute I would be more than happy with that," Ashwin added.
Head coach Rahul Dravid on Thursday clarified that the spinner was always in the plans after Ashwin returned to the ODI set-up after a year, "Having someone of Ashwin's experience is always good for us. He gives you experience, the ability to contribute with the bat at number eight. He is someone we taught about in case of an injury or an opportunity opened up. He was always in our plans. He has not played much ODI cricket for a while, but someone of his experience can deal with that," said the coach.
