Ace Indian off-spinner R Ashwin said that he has stopped bothering about landmarks long back as his only endeavour currently is to work on his craft and be useful whenever he plays for India.
R Ashwin on Thursday became the second-fastest bowler to bag 400 wickets in the longest format of the game. The former achieved the milestone in 77 Tests and is only behind Muttiah Muralitharan, who did so in 72 matches.
Ashwin, 34, became only the fourth Indian bowler after Kapil Dev (434), Anil Kumble (619) and Harbhajan Singh (417) to claim 400 wickets in the longest format.
While addressing the media, R Ashwin was asked the question which read “If surpassing Anil Kumble’s tally of 619 wickets could be a reality in the coming years” replying to which he said that it's pragmatically 218 wickets away but he has stopped thinking about these landmarks a long time ago.
"If you look at it pragmatically, it's 218 wickets away. For me, I have stopped thinking about all those landmarks and all long, long time ago.
"It's been about what I can do, how I can get better, what more I can offer to the team because every time you come back into this setup, especially now that I am only playing Test cricket, it's important to come back and offer to the team." R Ashwin said.
Ashwin said that he's looking to get better as a cricketer and added that he would like to continue to be in the happy zone he's in and not think about too much else.
"I am looking to get better as an individual and cricketer. That's probably one of the reasons why I am really, really happy and I am enjoying my game and probably the best I have done in the last 15 years. I would like to continue this phase and not think about too much else," he said.
Ashwin, who has been in the bio-bubble since the IPL and then has been part of the Australia series and the ongoing England series, while reflecting on the same said that that is incredibly hard to be without family.
"Look, the first part of my tour to Australia, the whole Australian tour my family was with me. And even during the IPL, I got them over for the back-half of the tournament. But this tour I have not got them here because I have a rotation-policy and left them at home so they can get a break. I think without them around it can be incredibly hard,” said R Ashwin.
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Ashwin remarked that staying in bio-bubble has made team bonding better.
“Yes, we get larger hotel spaces. We do get our entertainment area. We bond much better. One thing that stands out is that the fact that because of this bio-bubble the players are getting together more than ever. I think the team bonding has gotten better," he said.
Ashwin while talking about playing with pink-ball said that there is no apprehension about it and added that the pink-ball has got a new dimension to the game and it's all about adapting.
“There is no apprehension. If there was apprehension, we would have expressed. This is a new facet that has been introduced to the game. We are used to playing with the red ball. We are conditioned to playing with the red-ball and now all of a sudden, they have got in the pink ball. The pink ball has got a new dimension to the game, so it's about adapting," he said.
Ashwin further said that as time progresses players will get used to the pink-ball as they did for the white ball.
"You play more and more and get used to it, the players are going to adapt better. The same thing with one-dayers. We were used to playing with the red ball and then shifted to the white ball. Initially, the white-ball was doing a lot. Now, it does nothing. That’s how this format will also evolve. Anything new is going to have a lot of challenges," he concluded.
(PTI inputs)
