I'm playing for CSK and aspire to play for as long as I can: Ravichandran Ashwin a day after retiring from international cricket

Legendary Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who retired from international cricket on Wednesday, said he will try and play cricket for as long as he can. The statement came while he was interacting with the media upon returning to Chennai on Thursday.

The off-spinner was picked up by Chennai Super Kings for Rs 9.75 crore in the IPL 2025 mega auction. He also captains Dindigul Dragons in the Tamil Nadu Premier League and won the title this year.

"I am going to play for CSK and don't be surprised if I try and aspire to play for as long as I can. I don't think Ashwin the cricketer is done, I think Ashwin the Indian cricketer has probably called it time. That's it," said the Indian great.



Ashwin is one of the top wicket-takers in IPL with 180 wickets in 211 matches.

Further, Ashwin said it was not a hard decision, but was an emotional one. He added that the decision gave him a sense of relief and satisfaction.

It's not. It's emotional for a lot of people. It will be emotional, maybe it will sink in. But for me, it's a great sense of relief and satisfaction...It had been running in my head for a while but it was very instinctive. I felt it on day 4 and called it on day 5.

R Ashwin's international career

Ashwin made his Test debut in 2011 against the West Indies and went on to feature in 106 Tests and picked up 537 wickets, including 37 five-wicket hauls, and amassed 3,503 runs.


Having made his white-ball debut in 2010, Ashwin played 181 limited-over matches and snatched 228 wickets. He made 116 ODI appearances and took 156 wickets at an average of 33.20, with best figures of 4/25. He also made 707 runs at an average of 16.44, with one fifty, a knock of 65 in 63 innings. He is the 13th-highest wicket-taker in ODIs for India.

In 65 T20Is, he took 72 wickets at an average of 23.22. His best figures are 4/8. He also scored 184 runs in 19 innings at an average of 26.28, with best score of 31. He is the sixth-highest wicket-taker for India in T20Is.

With 765 scalps in 287 matches, he is India's second-highest wicket-taker across all formats, next to Kumble (953). He also won the 2011 50-Over World Cup and 2013 Champions Trophy with India.