R Ashwin can go on and on while talking cricket and explaining even the minutest of nuances of his craft, but March 5 was a bit different. And why wouldn’t it be? The off-spinner is set to become only the 14th Indian to enter the elite 100-Test club and even though “it’s a pretty big occasion by the sound of it and by the looks of it”, it doesn’t change anything for him.
But for the family – the father, mother, wife and two daughters – it is a big deal and Ashwin said that they are very excited for the occasion. While talking about his journey and various highs and lows, Ashwin sounded a ‘been there, done that professional’ but when it came to what it means for the family, the experienced campaigner went with the flow of emotions.
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“This 100th Test match means at least 10 to 100x more to my dad than it does to me. It probably means to a lot more to my wife than it does to me and my mom. In fact, my daughters are more excited about this game than I am frankly,” says Ashwin.
One could sense that overwhelming emotion in his tone when he acknowledged the sacrifices and support of the family in the long journey which got underway in the 2011 home Test vs West Indies in New Delhi. On the road for more than a decade, Ashwin’s journey has been nothing short of a roller-coaster but he always had the family’s support to cruise through the thrills. There were days when he wouldn’t feel like even going down from the room for dinner and it was on those days that support of the family made life easier.
“I think playing Test matches for such a long time and even playing Indian cricket for a long time and being on the road, the kind of sacrifices the family needs to make is enormous. There is a lot more emphasis on the value that the family brings to the table in countries beyond India. I think it still doesn’t dawn upon us.
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“When families tour abroad, I think people get the feeling that they’re on a holiday. It actually isn’t. You’re booted up inside a hotel room. Once you lose, you don’t feel like going down for dinner, you’re ordering in all the time, you’re staying in a very small room and it’s hard work. The kind of mental agony that they could go through, is phenomenal,” explains Ashwin.
Father still picks “40 calls”
The family did make life easier for their son, husband and father, but did bear the brunt when the offie would have an off day on the field. Ashwin’s father Ravichandran still gets multiple phone calls when his son isn’t the “greatest on a particular day”.
He has made repeated requests to not answer but the father doesn’t listen. Ravichandran has had a heart failure, multiple visits to the hospital, mother wasn’t well recently but there is no stopping them. Till date, even after 99 Test outings, the family watches the game like the first Test match he played.
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“My father feels obliged to pick up 40 calls and answer why his son wasn’t the greatest on a particular day, can be extremely cruel. And he does that. I’ve told him over the years that you don’t have to, you’re not obliged to answer to anybody. It’s crazy. Even now my dad watches the game like he watches the first Test match I played. He’s had a heart failure, he’s gone to the hospital twice, my mom’s again been to the hospital, I don’t know for what joy they’re doing it, but they continue doing it and it is a wonderful story.
“Every household has these stories; you see many more people coming through from different hamlets of the country. Unbelievable stories, but the families go through a lot. Just because they hail from a country with a billion people, doesn’t mean their journeys and families should mean lesser,” says Ashwin.
Even when asked multiple times about the occasion, milestone Test and the noise around it, Ashwin continued with his deft touches. He would use examples of Zaheer Khan and MS Dhoni who didn’t end up playing 100 Tests and continued to emphasise on how it has always been the journey and how it can be a “changing point” for his state.
“Zaheer Khan was on 94 (92) Tests, he picked a fifer and didn’t go on to play 100 Test matches. MS Dhoni could’ve rode on and played 100 Tests, he didn’t. I am not saying it is not a great feat. For different purposes, for where I come from, what I’ve done and how it can be a changing point for my state, I think it is a great achievement,” says Ashwin.
In a couple of days’ time, the noise around Ashwin’s 100th Test will be well behind him, and focus will shift back to action in the series. Whether or not he gets those “40 calls” after day’s play, father Ravichandran would still be glued to action just like he was in the November of 2011.
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