"Should've Never Become A Bowler": R Ashwin On 'Regret' He Would Have Post Retirement

One of the sharpest minds in the game and the world's no. 1 Test bowler at the moment, yet Ravichandran Ashwin finds it tough to break into the Indian team when it comes to overseas assignments. After Ashwin was left out of India's playing XI for the World Test Championship final against Australia in London, he received support from some former cricketers, including Sunil Gavaskar. Gavaskar, in fact, said that the 'horses for courses' philosophy is only applicable on bowlers.

Ashwin, admitting to Gavaskar's take to a large extent, said that he should've gone on to become a batter, and not a bowler. In a chat with the Indian Express, the veteran off-spinner shared some interesting tales from his young days when Sachin Tendulkar used to play for India.

"This is a true story and I don't talk from something made up. One day, I was seeing the India-Sri Lanka game and India's bowling was in tatters. My favourite was Sachin Tendulkar, and whatever runs he used to make we used to leak those runs with the ball. I used to think one day, I must be a bowler. Can't I be better than the bowlers that are there currently? This is a very childish way to think but that is how I thought and that is why I started bowling off-spin. This is where it began," Ashwin said.

But, Ashwin's mindset has changed now. The Tamil Nadu-born cricketer said that the first regret he will have when he retires is that he could've become a batter but chose to take up bowling.

"However, tomorrow when I hang up my boots, the first thing I will regret is having been such a fine batter, I should have never become a bowler.

This perception I have constantly tried to fight, but there are different yardsticks for bowlers and batters. And there are different ways of