Ravichandran Ashwin scored a century and pulled off a fifer in the second innings of the 1st Test match between India and Bangladesh. Thanks to the player's all-round performance, clubbed with Rishabh Pant and Shubman Gill's century, India won the game by 280 runs.
For his terrific performance, Ashwin was given the Player of the Match award. When he walked up to have a chat with Harsha Bhogle, the commentator asked him whether he keeps track of numbers, to which Ashwin cheekily replied, "I don't keep track of POTM awards."
"No, I don't keep track of POTM awards. Every time I play in Chennai, it's an amazing feeling. I've watched a lot of Tests, int'l cricket in those stands, to do it in front of those renovated stands is great. It was an opportunity to fight, dig in deep. I've seen so many team-mates do it in the past. It was a special inning, and it didn't sink in till day 2," said Ashwin in the post-match presentation.
Even Ravindra Jadeja played brilliantly throughout the Test match, scoring 86 runs in the first innings and taking five wickets in total in both innings. Jasprit Bumrah didn't spare the visitors, too, as he claimed four wickets in the first innings. Overall, it was a terrific performance by the entire India team as they kept their calm and went to bat again in the 2nd innings which allowed them to put up a huge target on the board.
I make a living by bowling, so bowling comes first all the time: Ravichandran Ashwin
Ravichandran Ashwin is an extraordinary bowler who has many accolades under his name. He's known as the smartest player who knows how to ball in difficult situations and won India a lot of games in the past. Apart from being the best bowler, he's also a good batter. Ashwin opened up about his batting skills and mentioned that batting comes to him naturally.
"I make a living by bowling, so bowling comes first all the time. I think like a bowler mostly but I have made a conscious effort to think like a batter when I walk out with a bat in my hand. Batting is something that comes naturally but yet I have struggled sometimes with my thought getting ahead of myself," added Ashwin.