Only captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Gautam Gambhir were in the loop about Ravichandran Ashwin's retirement plans. For everyone else, including star batter Virat Kohli and chief selector Ajit Agarkar, it was a total surprise. Right after Ashwin announced in a press conference, with Rohit by his side, that December 18 would be his final day as an Indian cricketer, Kohli jumped on social media to share that he found out about Ashwin's decision during the rain break on Day 5 of the Brisbane Test against Australia.

"I’ve played alongside you for 14 years, and when you told me today you were retiring, it hit me hard. I couldn’t help but think back on all those years we spent playing together," Kohli expressed. The emotional hug they shared in the Indian dressing room was a testament to that moment.

The selectors were pretty much in the dark. "The selection committee didn’t give any hints. Ashwin is a legend in Indian cricket, and he can make his own decisions," a senior BCCI source shared with PTI, wanting to stay anonymous.

On the other hand, it was a different story for Rohit and Gambhir. "For everyone else on the team, the news was a surprise, except for captand head coach Gautam Gambhir," The Indian Express reported.

When did Rohit find out about Ashwin hanging up his boots?

Rohit mentioned that he found out about Ashwin's retirement right after arriving in Perth during the first Test.

"When it comes to Ash, he was really confident about his choice. I got the news when I touched down in Perth. I missed the first few days of the match, but this had been on his mind for a while. There are definitely a lot of factors that played into it; I'm sure Ash will have more to say about it when he’s ready," Rohit shared with reporters after the match.

It turned out that he felt like, "If I'm not really needed in the series right now, maybe it's best for me to step back." He’s saying goodbye to the game, but we haven’t been to Melbourne yet, so we’re not sure what the conditions will be like or what the lineup will look like. We need to keep Ash in mind and respect his feelings; if this is how he sees things, we should support him in that decision.

Ashwin holds the record for the most Player of the Series awards in Test cricket, with 11 to his name. He also became the second-fastest bowler to hit 500 Test wickets, reaching that milestone in just 98 matches in February 2024. He’s the quickest to get past the 250, 300, and 350 Test wickets marks. Ashwin is stepping away after playing only one Test in the current Border-Gavaskar Trophy. He was part of the playing XI for the pink-ball Test in Adelaide, where he managed to take just one wicket. Over his career, Ashwin has played 106 Tests, 116 ODIs, and 65 T20Is for India, amassing a total of 765 wickets across all formats.

HOW DID YOU LIKE THIS ARTICLE? CHOOSE YOUR EMOTICON!