Former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has opened up on his shock retirement from international cricket and also shared his views on current head coach Gautam Gambhir.

During India’s tour of Australia, Ashwin surprised one and all by retiring from international cricket on December 18, 2024. He played the second Test of the five-match series in Adelaide but was dropped for the next match for Ravindra Jadeja in Brisbane, following which he called it a day.

Also read: ‘Gambhir vs Kohli, Rohit’: Head coach admits ‘mistakes’

Ashwin, India’s second-highest wicket-taker in Tests after Anil Kumble, played in 106 Tests and took 537 wickets. He also scored 3,503 runs in the five-day format. He also featured in 116 ODIs and 65 T20Is.

What Ashwin said

“One of my strongest assets, I feel, is my ability to make decisions. Whether it’s right or wrong is for people to debate. But at the end of the day, it’s my life. I need to do it on my terms. The moment, I think, at Perth, when we had Jaddu and myself as the lead spinners in the side, and Washy (Washington Sundar) played that game in Perth, and then the next game, again, I came in, and then I had to again make way, was kind of suggestive or indicative to me that my time was up,” Ashwin said at the RevSportz Conclave.

“And if somebody else had to come and take up that place, by all means, they need their space and time. And I’m not one of those guys who will hang around, you know, wanting to see if I can make a comeback. I’ve had far too many. I’ve come far, far too much in my life to be able to, you know, dilly-dally around with all those things,” he added.

Ashwin was asked, “How do you rate Gautam Gambhir?” and the “favouritism” from the coach, among other things.

He also spoke on Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma’s Test retirements and said if the coach thought they had to quit, it was fine.

“If somebody has to have angst against Gautam, it’s me, right? I come out on his second or third tour as coach…” Ashwin said.

Ashwin’s fight with his father

“My dad is a huge well-wisher. He might have some angst on the outside. When I came back from Australia, he said something in the media. I have consistently told him that ‘do not speak ill of a player when I am in the house’.

We have fought over these things. Gautam, the coach, has a job to do for me in many ways, and even if he thought that I must move on or Virat must move on or Rohit must move on, it’s okay; it’s fine because he has a job to do. And at that particular instance, if I felt bitter about it, that’s also okay because it’s my emotion. But if you detach yourself from that, it’s clear to me that he has a job to do, and maybe I do not have a future in his regime,” Ashwin added.

Further, he said, “But I have always wanted to shed ego as the first thing in my life, and I’m still in the process of shedding ego.

We are all human beings. It comes to us. But if you detach yourself, things do make sense. Sometimes, because of the adulation we get in this country, we do end up thinking that we are invincible, which is not the case.”

Cricket fans have often blamed Gambhir for the Test retirements of Kohli and Rohit. The duo quit Tests in 2025 and now play only one format of the game – ODIs. They bid adieu to T20Is in 2024 after winning the World Cup.