“I don’t know if he’s…,” R Ashwin says coach Rahul Dravid has “brainwashed” him 

R Ashwin claims Rahul Dravid has brainwashed him into not caring about anything but creating memories.

“I don’t know if he’s…,” R Ashwin says coach Rahul Dravid has “brainwashed” him 

R Ashwin, Rahul Dravid (Images via Twitter, NDTV Sports)

India off-spinner R Ashwin rocked the West Indies batting lineup in the first inning of the first Test in Dominica. The seasoned bowler claimed his 33rd five-wicket haul in Test cricket and looked really happy about it. While Ashwin brushed aside the talks of the World Test Championship (WTC) snub, he did talk about coach Rahul Dravid brainwashing him.  

Ashwin revealed how his first meeting with coach Dravid and the latter’s message about collecting memories rather than focusing on records and achievements helped the spinner cope up with tough situations. The 36-year-old claimed that he is totally behind Dravid’s thoughts as if the coach brainwashed him into believing these things. 

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While talking to the media after the end of Day 1’s play, Ashwin reflected on his career so far and how he remembers very little about it. “Actually when I look back at my career, I wonder how it’s gone by so fast. It’s been literally 14 years on the go and if you include IPL also, it’s been almost a 15-16 years journey. It’s just gone like that,” said Ashwin. 

“All I would tell anybody is… the first time I met Rahul Dravid as a coach, he made this statement: ‘It’s not about how many wickets you take, how many runs you score. You’ll forget about all of them. It is only the great memories you create as a team that’ll stick with you,'” Ashwin said. “I’m totally behind that. I don’t know if he’s brainwashed me to do that.”

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R Ashwin keeping his promise about enjoying everything that comes his way

r ashwin with virat kohli
R Ashwin celebrates with Virat Kohli (Image via TOI Twitter)

The veteran spinner then talked about the promise he made to himself after the pandemic a couple of years back. R Ashwin said that he has promised to enjoy everything that comes his way, whether it is an achievement or even if he is getting dropped. 

“After Covid when cricket began again, I promised myself that I’ll enjoy whatever happens… whether I’m playing, getting dropped or if I’m retiring. Whatever happens, I will enjoy it,” he said.

Notably, Ashwin is in the twilight of his career. While the 36-year-old is still very much relevant in Test cricket, Ashwin’s white-ball career is almost over. The Tamil Nadu cricketer has played 178 white-ball matches while claiming 223 wickets.