More Than The Destination, The Journey Has Been Special: R Ashwin Ahead of His 100th Test

Ravichandran Ashwin will become the 14th Indian to play 100 Test matches when he steps out at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala for the fifth and last Test of the series between England and India, which begins on Thursday.

R Ashwin even though it is a remarkable feat, playing 100 Test matches, it was the journey rather than the destination that meant more to him.

“Its a big occasion, from the look and sound of it,” Ravichandran Ashwin said at the press conference ahead of the match.

“More than destination, journey has been special,” Ashwin added.

Ravichandran Ashwin also revealed that playing 100 Tests is special for his entire family.

“100th Test matters a lot to me, but it matters more to my father, mother, wife and even my kids. My kids are more excited about the Test. Families go through a lot during a player’s journey. My father still answers 40 calls on what his son did during a game,” Ashwin said.

When asked about playing in the cold conditions in Dharamsala, Ashwin said: “21 years ago I was here playing u19 cricket for two months. It is pretty cold, will take more time for fingers to adjust.”

“That’s the beauty of it, the unknown,” he added.

Ashwin had recently went past the 500-wicket mark in the third Test in Rajkot to become only the second Indian to achieve the feat.

India have an unassailable 3-1 lead by winning the fourth test by five wickets. England had won the first test in Hyderabad by 28 runs. India responded by winning the second test in Visakhapatnam by 106 runs, and then the third test in Rajkot by 434 runs.

The win in the fourth Test, by five wickets, was India’s 17th consecutive Test series win at home, where they have not lost a test series since an Alastair Cook-led England bested them in 2012. For England, who won the opening test in Hyderabad and have been competitive as well as entertaining in Visakhapatnam and Ranchi — it was their first series defeat under captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon ‘Baz’ McCullum.

Despite the series being decided, India and England still have 12 World Test Championship (WTC) points to play for in Dharamsala, which gets underway on March 7.

(With inputs from Agencies)