Ravichandran Ashwin facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Ravichandran Ashwin

Ashwin in 2015
Personal information
Born	(1986-09-17) 17 September 1986 (age 38) Madras, Tamil Nadu, India
Nickname	Lege
Height	188 cm (6 ft 2 in)
Batting	Right-handed
Bowling	Right-arm off-break
Role	Bowling all-rounder
International information
National side	India (2010–2024)
Test debut (cap 271)	6 November 2011 v West Indies
Last Test	6 December 2024 v Australia
ODI debut (cap 185)	5 June 2010 v Sri Lanka
Last ODI	8 October 2023 v Australia
ODI shirt no.	99
T20I debut (cap 30)	12 June 2010 v Zimbabwe
Last T20I	10 November 2022 v England
T20I shirt no.	99
Domestic team information
Years	Team
2006/07–2019/20	Tamil Nadu
2008–2015, 2025	Chennai Super Kings
2016	Rising Pune Supergiant
2016/17–present	Dindigul Dragons
2017	Worcestershire
2018–2019	Kings XI Punjab
2019	Nottinghamshire
2020–2021	Delhi Capitals
2021	Surrey
2022–2024	Rajasthan Royals
Career statistics
Competition Test ODI T20I FC Matches 106 116 65 162 Runs scored 3,503 707 184 5,415 Batting average 25.92 16.44 26.28 27.62 100s/50s 6/14 0/1 0/0 8/25 Top score 124 65 31* 124 Balls bowled 27,138 6,141 1,452 41,782 Wickets 537 156 72 779 Bowling average 23.95 33.20 23.22 24.96 5 wickets in innings 37 0 0 56 10 wickets in match 8 0 0 12 Best bowling 7/59 4/25 4/8 7/59 Catches/stumpings 36/– 30/– 11/– 61/–
Medal record Men's cricket Representing  India Men's Cricket Representing  India ICC Cricket World Cup Winner 2011 India-Bangladesh-Sri Lanka 2023 India ICC Champions Trophy Winner 2013 England and Wales 2017 England and Wales ICC T20 World Cup 2014 Bangladesh ICC World Test Championship 2019-2021 2021-2023 ACC Asia Cup Winner 2010 Sri Lanka Winner 2016 Bangladesh
Source: ESPNcricinfo, 4 March 2025
YouTube information
Genre	Vlog Podcast
Subscribers	1.61 million
Total views	225.81 million
Subscriber and view counts updated as of 19 December 2024.

Ravichandran Ashwin (born 17 September 1986) is a famous Indian cricket player. He is known as a right-arm off spin bowler and also bats well lower down the order. Many people think he is one of the best spin bowlers ever.

Ashwin played for the Indian cricket team. He was part of the team that won the 2011 Cricket World Cup and the 2013 Champions Trophy. He also played for Tamil Nadu in local matches and for Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

He has taken over 500 wickets in Test matches. He was the fastest bowler to reach 300 Test wickets based on the number of innings played. Ashwin has won the "Man of the Series" award eleven times in Tests. This is the most for any cricketer, shared with Muttiah Muralitharan. He is also one of only three players to have scored 3000 runs and taken 500 wickets in Test matches.

Ashwin started as an opening batsman but later became an off-break bowler. He played his first major match for Tamil Nadu in December 2006. He joined the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the 2010 Indian Premier League. His great bowling helped him get called up for international matches in June 2010. He helped CSK win two IPL titles (2010, 2011) and two Champions League Twenty20 titles (2010, 2014).

In 2011, Ashwin made his Test debut against West Indies. He was the seventh Indian bowler to take five wickets in his very first Test match. He was very successful on turning pitches in India. In 2016, he won the "ICC Cricketer of the Year" and "ICC Men's Test Cricketer of the Year" awards. He was also named in the "ICC Men's Test Team of the Decade" for 2011–20. In 2015, he received the Arjuna award from the Indian Government. Ashwin announced his retirement from all international cricket on 18 December 2024. In January 2025, he received the Padma Shri, a high civilian award from India.

About Ravichandran Ashwin

His Early Life and Family

Ashwin was born on 17 September 1986 in Madras (now Chennai), Tamil Nadu. His parents are Ravichandran and Chitra. His father, Ravichandran, played cricket at a club level.

Ashwin went to Padma Seshadri Bala Bhavan for his early schooling. He later studied at St. Bede's School for higher secondary education. He earned a degree in Information Technology from SSN College of Engineering in Chennai.

How He Started Playing Cricket

Ashwin began playing cricket at age nine for YMCA. His first coach was Chandrasekar Rao. When he moved to St. Bede's, he joined their cricket academy and was coached by C K Vijaya Kumar.

He first tried medium pace bowling. But his coach advised him to switch to off spin, which he did. Later, former spinner Sunil Subramaniam coached him. Former cricketer W V Raman also guided him. Ashwin even played as an opening batter for the Indian under-17 team.

Ashwin lives in West Mambalam, Chennai. He married his childhood friend, Prithi Narayanan, on 13 November 2011. They have two daughters.

Ashwin's International Cricket Journey

Starting His International Career (2010–2011)

Ashwin's great performance in the 2010 Indian Premier League led to his selection for the Indian team. He went on a tour to Zimbabwe in May 2010. He played his first ODI match against Sri Lanka on 5 June 2010. He scored 38 runs and took 2 wickets in that game.

A week later, he made his T20I debut against Zimbabwe. Ashwin was part of the team that won the 2010 Asia Cup. He also played a key role in India's 5–0 win against New Zealand in November–December 2010. He was the top wicket-taker in that series with 11 wickets.

Ashwin was part of the 15-member squad for the 2011 Cricket World Cup. India won this World Cup, beating Sri Lanka in the final. Ashwin played two matches in the tournament. He was also India's best bowler during the England tour in 2011.

Test Debut and Rising to Fame (2011–2012)

In November 2011, Ashwin made his Test debut against West Indies in Delhi. Sachin Tendulkar gave him his Test cap. He took 6 wickets for 47 runs in the second innings, helping India win. He was named "Man of the Match," becoming the third Indian to win this award on Test debut.

In the third Test in Mumbai, he took 5 wickets and scored his first international century. This made him only the third Indian to score a century and take five wickets in the same Test match. He was again named "Man of the Match" and "Man of the Series" for his all-round performance.

Ashwin in a T20 match against Australia in 2012

Becoming a Consistent Performer (2012–2015)

Ashwin showed great form in the home Test series against New Zealand in 2012. In the first Test, he took 12 wickets for 85 runs, helping India win. He was named "Man of the Match" and "Man of the Series" for taking 18 wickets.

During England's tour of India in late 2012, Ashwin became the fastest Indian to reach 50 wickets in Test cricket. He achieved this in his ninth game.

In February 2013, Ashwin had a very successful series against Australia in India. He took 7 wickets in his home ground, Chennai, helping India win easily. He finished the series with 29 wickets, the most by an Indian bowler in a four-Test series. He won the "Man of the Series" award. India won the series 4–0, a historic whitewash against Australia.

Ashwin was part of the Indian team that won the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy in England. His bowling helped India win the final by five runs. He was also named in the 'Team of the Tournament'. He was a top wicket-taker in the 2014 Asia Cup and the 2014 ICC World Twenty20. He was named in the "Team of the Tournament" for the 2014 T20 World Cup.

Reaching Stardom (2015–2019)

Ashwin played in the 2015 Cricket World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. He took 13 wickets as India reached the semi-finals. In the 2015 series against Sri Lanka, he took 21 wickets and won the "Man of the Series" award. These efforts helped him become the top-ranked bowler in Test cricket in 2015.

In November 2015, Ashwin was a star in the Test series against South Africa in India. He became the fastest Indian to reach 150 wickets in Test cricket. He took 12 wickets in one match, helping India win the series. He was named in the ICC Men's Test Team of the Year in 2015.

Ashwin bowling in a Test match in Trent Bridge in 2018

Ashwin was part of the Indian team that won the 2016 Asia Cup. He had a brilliant tour to West Indies in 2016, scoring two centuries and taking 17 wickets. In New Zealand's tour of India in 2016, Ashwin took 27 wickets in three Tests. He also performed well against England, taking 28 wickets and scoring 306 runs.

In 2016, Ashwin took 82 wickets in a single domestic season, a new record. He also became the second Indian to score 500 runs and take 50 wickets in one season. For his amazing performances in 2016, the International Cricket Council named him the "ICC Cricketer of the Year" and "ICC Test Cricketer of the Year." He was the third Indian to win the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy.

In February 2017, Ashwin took 21 wickets against Australia. He was the leading wicket-taker in the Indian tour of Sri Lanka in August 2017 with 17 wickets. He was also the top wicket-taker in Sri Lanka's return tour in December 2017. He was named in the Test team of the year for the third time in 2017.

Final Years of International Cricket (2019–2024)

In the 2019–20 home season, Ashwin took 20 wickets across five matches against South Africa and Bangladesh. In the Indian tour of Australia, India won a historic 2–1 victory, with Ashwin taking 12 wickets. In December 2020, he was named in the ICC Men's Test Team of the Decade for 2011-20.

During England's tour of India in 2021, Ashwin took 32 wickets and scored 189 runs, including a century. He became the fastest Indian bowler to reach 400 Test wickets. He was the fourth Indian to achieve this milestone. Ashwin was the top wicket-taker in the 2021 ICC World Test Championship final in June 2021.

In September 2021, Ashwin made a surprise return to the Indian squad for the 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup. He played T20 international matches throughout 2021 and 2022. He was also part of the Indian squad that reached the semi-finals of the 2022 ICC Men's T20 World Cup.

In the 2021–22 season, Ashwin was the leading wicket-taker in home series against New Zealand and Sri Lanka. He was named in the ICC Test team of the year for 2021. In the Australian tour to India in March 2023, Ashwin took 25 wickets. India won the series, which helped them qualify for the 2023 ICC World Test Championship final.

Ashwin was called back to the ODI team for the series against Australia before the 2023 Cricket World Cup. He was then named in the Indian squad for the World Cup. On 16 February 2024, Ashwin took his 500th Test wicket during the series against England. He became the second Indian and ninth overall player to reach this milestone. In the final match of the same series, Ashwin played his 100th Test match. He finished as the top wicket-taker of the series with 26 wickets.

During the Indian home season in 2023–24, Ashwin scored a century and took six wickets in a Test match against Bangladesh in Chennai. This was the fourth time he achieved both a century and five wickets in a Test match. He became the first cricketer to do this twice at the same venue. He took his 37th five-wicket haul, which is the second most in Test cricket. He also became the oldest Indian cricketer to take a five-wicket haul. He finished the series as the joint highest wicket-taker and won a record-equaling eleventh "Man of the Series" award.

Ashwin played his last Test match during India's tour of Australia in December 2024. He announced his retirement from international cricket on 18 December 2024.

Playing for Domestic Teams

Tamil Nadu Team

Ashwin played for the Tamil Nadu in local cricket. He made his first-class debut for Tamil Nadu in 2006, taking six wickets. He also played his first List A and T20 matches for the team.

Ashwin captained the Tamil Nadu team that won the Vijay Hazare Trophy in 2008-09. He also played for the South Zone team. Ashwin captained the India A side in the Deodhar Trophy in 2018.

Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL)

Ashwin was chosen as the captain for the Dindigul Dragons team in the first season of the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) T20 tournament in 2016. He has played for this team for eight seasons. He led them to win the title in the 2024 season and reach two finals in 2018 and 2019.

Playing in County Cricket

In August 2017, Ashwin played his first English county match for Worcestershire. He took three wickets in that game. He returned to play for Worcestershire in 2018. In 2019, Nottinghamshire signed Ashwin. He took 34 wickets and scored 339 runs in five matches for them.

Indian Premier League (IPL) Career

Ashwin joined Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in 2008 for the first season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). He played for CSK for eight seasons until 2015. His big season was in 2010 when he took 13 wickets, helping Chennai win their first IPL title. Chennai also won the Champions League title in 2010, and Ashwin was named "Player of the Series."

Ashwin helped Chennai win a second IPL title in 2011. He also won his second Champions League Twenty20 title with CSK in 2014. He took 90 wickets for the Super Kings in 97 IPL matches.

After CSK was suspended for two years, Ashwin was picked by Rising Pune Supergiants in 2015. He took ten wickets in 2016. In 2018, Punjab Kings bought Ashwin and made him their captain. In 2019, he ran out a batsman who was "backing up" (leaving the crease early). This caused a lot of discussion and led to a rule change in cricket.

Before the 2020 season, Ashwin moved to Delhi Capitals. He took 13 wickets for them. In the 2022 IPL Auction, Rajasthan Royals bought Ashwin. In a match in 2022, he became the first IPL player to "retired out" tactically. He took 12 wickets and scored 191 runs, helping Rajasthan reach the finals. In April 2022, Ashwin became the second off-spinner to take 150 wickets in IPL. In the 2025 player auction, Ashwin was picked up by the Chennai Super Kings again.

How Ashwin Bowls

Ashwin is known as one of the best off-spin bowlers ever. He can bowl many different types of balls. He often "flights" the ball, which means he throws it high to give it more spin and make it dip.

Besides his normal off-breaks, he bowls an arm ball and a carrom ball. He uses the carrom ball a lot in shorter cricket games. He even bowled leg-breaks and googly in IPL 2013. He learned his carrom ball from a "soduku ball" he used to bowl in street cricket.

His childhood coach, Sunil Subramaniam, said that Ashwin was very smart about bowling. He understood how to use angles and how to guess what a batsman would do. He knew how to set the field to put pressure on the batsman, even when he was young.

Amazing Records and Achievements

• Fastest to reach 250, 300, and 350 wickets in Test cricket (by number of matches).
• Fastest Indian to reach 50, 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, 350, 400, 450, and 500 Test wickets (by number of matches).
• Only Indian cricketer to score a century and take five wickets in the same Test match four times.
• First Indian to take 50 T20I wickets.
• Most "Man of the Series" awards in Tests (11).
• Second most five-wicket hauls in Tests (37) and fastest to 25 five-wicket hauls.
• Second highest wicket-taker in Tests for India (537).
• Second Indian to score 500 runs and take 50 wickets in a calendar year (2016).
• Highest wicket-taker in a single season (82).
• Most dismissals of left-handed batsmen in Tests.
• Second Indian bowler to take 300 Test wickets at home.
• Second Indian to take 750 international wickets and third Indian to take 700 international wickets.
• One of only three all-rounders to achieve 3000 runs and 500 wickets in Tests.
• Most wickets taken in India (383).
• Second highest rating points ever by an Indian bowler in Test ICC rankings (904).

Awards and Honors

Ashwin receiving the Arjuna Award from Sarbananda Sonowal, then Minister of Sports

Ashwin receiving the CEAT award from VVS Laxman

Team Wins for India

• Asia Cup: 2010, 2016
• Cricket World Cup: 2011
• ICC Champions Trophy: 2013

Team Wins for Chennai Super Kings

• Indian Premier League: 2010, 2011
• Champions League: 2010, 2014

Individual Awards

• Polly Umrigar Award: 2012-13
• Arjuna award: 2015
• ICC Men's Cricketer of the Year: 2016
• ICC Men's Test Cricketer of the Year: 2016
• ICC Men's Test Team of the Year: 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2021
• CEAT International Cricketer of the Year: 2016–17
• ICC Men's Test Team of the Decade: 2011-20
• ICC Men's Player of the Month: February, 2021
• Padma Shri: 2025

Other Honors

In March 2025, the Greater Chennai Corporation decided to rename Ramakrishnapuram first street in West Mambalam, where Ashwin lives, as Ravichandran Ashwin street. This was done to honor him.

Career Statistics Highlights

Ashwin has scored over 4000 runs in international cricket. He has made six centuries and 14 half-centuries in Test matches. He also has one half-century in ODIs.

He has taken over 700 wickets in international cricket. More than 500 of these wickets are in Test matches, putting him among the top ten Test wicket-takers. Ashwin has been especially good in India, where he has taken over 350 wickets.

Ashwin has scored a century and taken five wickets in the same Test match three times. In 2016, he scored over 500 runs and took over 50 wickets. He was the second Indian, after Kapil Dev, to do this. Ashwin has won eleven "Man of the Series" awards in Tests, which is the most for any player, tied with Muttiah Muralitharan.

Centuries Scored by Ashwin

Here are the six centuries Ashwin scored in international cricket:

No.	Score	Against	Pos.	Inn.	Venue	H/A	Date	Result
1	103	West Indies	8	2	Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai	Home	22 November 2011	Won
2	124	West Indies	8	2	Eden Gardens, Kolkata	Home	26 November 2013	Won
3	113	West Indies	6	1	Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, North Sound	Away	21 July 2016	Won
4	118	West Indies	6	1	Daren Sammy Cricket Ground, Gros Islet	Away	9 August 2016	Won
5	106	England	8	3	M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai	Home	13 February 2021	Won
6	113	Bangladesh	8	1	M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai	Home	19 September 2024	Won

Man of the Series Awards

Here are the "Man of the Series" awards Ashwin has won in international cricket:

No.	Season	Against	H/A	Type	Matches	Runs	Wickets	Result
1	2011-12	West Indies	Home	Test	3	121	22	Won (2-0)
2	2012	New Zealand	Home	Test	2	69	18	Won (2-0)
3	2012-13	Australia	Home	Test	4	20	29	Won (4-0)
4	2015	Sri Lanka	Away	Test	3	94	21	Won (2-1)
5	2015-16	Sri Lanka	Home	T20I	3	31	9	Won (2-1)
6	2015-16	South Africa	Home	Test	4	101	31	Won (3-0)
7	2016	West Indies	Away	Test	4	235	17	Won (2-0)
8	2016-17	New Zealand	Home	Test	3	71	27	Won (3-0)
9	2020-21	England	Home	Test	4	189	32	Won (3-1)
10	2021-22	New Zealand	Home	Test	2	70	14	Won (1-0)
11	2022-23	Australia	Home	Test	4	86	25	Won (2-1)
12	2024-25	Bangladesh	Home	Test	2	114	11	Won (2-0)

Images for kids

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  Ashwin receiving the Arjuna Award from Sarbananda Sonowal, then Minister of Sports

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  Ashwin receiving the CEAT award from VVS Laxman