[PICTURES] Ravi Ashwin: An articulate genius or an overconfident and rude person?

[BunnyRabbit]

Has 400 wickets in tests at a stellar bowling average. No one can deny his bowling quality. Seems to have a very good brain and is intelligent and knows his game inside out.

Read an article about him on CI a few years back where he recalled all the experience that led to his current bowling action and success in the longest format. Dispelled the release points and wrist position and just said it's the knowledge that I have gained through the years playing and practicing that has helped me adjusting my action.

One thing that the interviewer mentioned was how articulate and confident Ashwin was throughout the interview and how easily and confidently he was able to get his thoughts and views across and how easily he engages you in a conversation.

His comments in the press conferences have been a thing since 2014 as far as I can remember. He took a dig at the offies during the 2014 asia cup regarding how they were using full sleeves to chuck and it was something that the casual audience didn't know before and was proved somewhat correct. He even went on to wear full sleeves during that tournament and possibly chucked intentionally to get noticed.

He was very vocal during the recent tour to Australia as well. Credited one of the Australians for his success on the tour who had made a sly remark about him.

He gives the vibes of a guy who is very confident in his life and doesn't really care what others think or say and on the hand is equally very intelligent and smart about getting his thoughts across.

So how do Indian fans think of him? He will definitely go down as one of the best Indian Spinners.

 

[Mamoon]

He is super smart and people with above average intelligence are also a bit overconfident at times.

He is not rude though. It is obvious from the fact that he regularly interacts with common people on Twitter. How many cricketers do that? Very few.

He is just a regular, smart South Indian guy who happens to be a top class Test cricketer. He would have had a very successful career even if he didn’t pick up cricket.

 

[Thunderbolt14]

Critics will always refer to self belief as arrogance. It is the mark of a champion however, and Ashwin is a champion.

Akhtar gets a similarly bad rap by his critics but I have generally found his attitude to be one of great self belief, not one of rude confidence. The same goes for the legendary Yuvraj Singh. These are true firebrand professionals and their zeal is what separates them from the mortals.

Ashwin is one of the greatest spinners to have played the game. You need sheer will and mental fortitude to achieve that status, and I would have been more surprised if Ashwin did not display these attributes.

 

[Bigboii]

Ashwin is a good guy
I don't know.why anyone would call him rude

Whenever I saw his interview or him just talking he looked a genuinely nice guy who happens to be smart, articulate which may come across as overconfidence to some but I don't think it's true

One of my favorite cricketers of this generation

 

[jnaveen1980]

Ashwin is such a nice guy personally. He doesn't have this big star ego. Even now he plays cricket little kids on the streets. He tries to impart his knowledge to them. There is nothing fake about him. He doesn't resort to cliches.

 

[BreadPakoda]

Agree with the above posters. He comes across as genuinely nice. He is also a good student of the game. That Inzi interview was particularly nice. Made him feel comfortable, asked questioned nicely, and was curious to learn.

 

[street cricketer]

Not sure where the rude part comes from.. He doesn't cuss on the field and routinely praises cricketers from all over the world (yes, even Pakistani cricketers which is a strict no-go rule when it comes to active Indian cricketers).

He is confident and articulate, and I'm not talking about the fluency of his language, but the way he expresses his thoughts in a very clear manner. We are used to cricketers being very politically correct in press conferences but he has been one cricketer who has always challenged the conventional norms and not been apologetic about it even if he has been attacked from all corners for his beliefs - be it regarding the Mankad or talk about the pitches. So all this can rub the people the wrong way but he isn't arrogant. Plenty of cricketers are on social media, but most are there just for the promotions of different brands. He is one of the few cricketers (Jimmy Neesham is another guy) where you get full value for following them as he doesn't do the usual generic pc talk and expresses his opinions and even does movie reviews in his youtube channel.

I think there are two types of great cricketers - The ones who are absolute genius on the cricket field but are not great in expressing how they do it. I've listened to so many interviews of Wasim trying to read his thoughts on his own bowling but been disappointed with generic talk from him. At the same time, there is the other type who can break down every little detail in their batting/bowling and speak in depth about the technical aspect of it. These type of cricketers make great coaches/commentators. I specifically make it a point to search for channel 7 live stream whenever India tour Australia just to listen to Ponting speak about the game. His reading of the game and match situations is second to none and is by far the best commentator going around in world cricket, if you're purely talking about the technical part of the game. I think Ashwin belongs to the second category and I believe he has a huge future as a broadcaster. Although him talking about the little technical aspects of his bowling in depth while he is still playing can perhaps rub people the wrong way.

 

[Hyperion66]

The above posters beautifully articulated their thoughts on the topic, I don't really have anything special to add. I think Ashwin has a uber bright future post-cricket, could be a fantastic coach or a very very astute commentator.

 

[Buffet]

One of the few cricketers who are great at talking technical things and say them plainly. I love to hear Ashwin.

 

[Cryin Out Loud]

Any player who uses the word 'angst' in a normal conversation has my immediate interest and appreciation.

Then the points he makes are well thought out, and he delivers them in an articulate fashion.

 

[sam_ahm]

Ashwin speaks well and by no means I find him to be rude, but just because a person speaks confidently and strongly, doesn't mean he/she is always right. People look at a person speaking confidently and purely on that basis think whatever he/she says are words of a genius.

For example his recent comments on what defines a good surface are all over the internet as if he said something heroic. I mean any track that turns viciously on day 1 with puff of dust coming off the surface from the very first session, fast bowlers from both teams rendered useless, cannot actually be a good surface. Tomorrow England will say we will play in a grass field, what makes it a bad surface? Who defines? I mean that is just stupid. Journalist could have easily countered his comments. Because ashiwn spoke confidently and strongly, people peecieve it to be a genius statement!

 

[Ab Fan]

If he ends his career at average less than 27, he will be India's greatest test spinner ever.

 

[pillionrider]

His latest press con is a knockout.

Favourite was probably the opening when he said he sent his family home as part of his rotation policy )

 

[Technics 1210]

He will make an excellent Indian commentator.

 

[street cricketer]

Ashwin speaks well and by no means I find him to be rude, but just because a person speaks confidently and strongly, doesn't mean he/she is always right. People look at a person speaking confidently and purely on that basis think whatever he/she says are words of a genius.

For example his recent comments on what defines a good surface are all over the internet as if he said something heroic. I mean any track that turns viciously on day 1 with puff of dust coming off the surface from the very first session, fast bowlers from both teams rendered useless, cannot actually be a good surface. Tomorrow England will say we will play in a grass field, what makes it a bad surface? Who defines? I mean that is just stupid. Journalist could have easily countered his comments. Because ashiwn spoke confidently and strongly, people peecieve it to be a genius statement!

Guess what, this has been happening for the past 5 years in New Zealand where spinners are rendered useless. Matches have finished within 3 days quite often but there's hardly any criticism of the wickets in New Zealand. When India gets rolled for sub 200 scores on green decks, the overwhelming talk is always about how the Indian batsmen didn't adapt to the moving ball well. The overwhelming talk in the last two matches when England have collapsed to sub 200 totals have been about the state of the wickets.

Ashwin is hardly shutting down the criticisms of the wicket. If you have listened to his previous press conferences and even the last one, has consistently maintained everyone has a right to an opinion and to criticise the lack of "good" cricket wickets, he just said they don't have to buy it.

 

[NishanKonar]

Dont blame Ashwin. Not his fault that he took loads on wickets on such dodgy wickets. He has no choice but to come out all guns blazing with usual rhetoric like " Who decides what is good pitch ".Also Anil Kumble got bucketful of wickets on such pitches in the 90s & nobody questions his legacy. Its Harbhajan who will feel most aggrieved - he bowled mostly inn the 2000s when pitches were more batting friendly

But again futile defending a pitch where test match ends in 2 days & part time spinner like Joe Root takes 5 wickets

 

[Hasan123]

He understands the game well and he explains himself when it press conferences and interviews. He can definitely have a career in the media or as a coach when he finishes his career .

 

[Yk313]

As with most things in life, the reality is somewhere in the middle in terms of capabilities and confidence - not the rude part though.

As far as rudeness is concerned, a better word may be ‘blunt’. Is experienced enough to be confident in speaking his mind and sharing his convictions, at times bluntly, and smart enough to have good content to voice.

Not quite the comparison, but I don’t think most here felt Asif was ‘rude’ in ‘applauding’ Pieterson et al on their good shots during his set ups. Nor his nonchalance after dismissing them, and this despite the fact that Asif was far more in their face on the field whereas Ashwin only unveils his thinking during press conferences et cetera.

 

[mastimasti]

Dont blame Ashwin. Not his fault that he took loads on wickets on such dodgy wickets. He has no choice but to come out all guns blazing with usual rhetoric like " Who decides what is good pitch ".Also Anil Kumble got bucketful of wickets on such pitches in the 90s & nobody questions his legacy. Its Harbhajan who will feel most aggrieved - he bowled mostly inn the 2000s when pitches were more batting friendly

But again futile defending a pitch where test match ends in 2 days & part time spinner like Joe Root takes 5 wickets

Indian pitches in the 90s were no as bas a they have been in the last 10 or 11 years, but Kumble did not truly turn the ball and as an actual SPINNER of the ball I think Ashwin is champ. And I do not believe anyone is blaming Ashwin they are asking legitimate questions. Pitches are called out and matches abandoned on pitches where there is severe uneven bounce, this had severe uneven turn where some parts of the pitch were solid and other parts were like a sandy beach. It is one of the worst pitches I have ever seen.

It is also legitimate to question just what impact Ashwin would have had if home pitches were not borderline pathetic. His career average is 24 but away average sits at 31, striking at 64...this includes games played elsewhere in Asia. If you exclude those Asian games there is an average of 37...home average 22. That large a difference indicates something which Ashwin will be uncomfortable admitting.

 

[Bewal Express]

He is great bowler, amongst the best ever to left handers, a good bowler to right handers but not as good. He is no the doubt beneficiary of very helpful conditions at home( to put it mildly).

 

[Saurav]

Indian pitches in the 90s were no as bas a they have been in the last 10 or 11 years, but Kumble did not truly turn the ball and as an actual SPINNER of the ball I think Ashwin is champ. And I do not believe anyone is blaming Ashwin they are asking legitimate questions. Pitches are called out and matches abandoned on pitches where there is severe uneven bounce, this had severe uneven turn where some parts of the pitch were solid and other parts were like a sandy beach. It is one of the worst pitches I have ever seen.

It is also legitimate to question just what impact Ashwin would have had if home pitches were not borderline pathetic. His career average is 24 but away average sits at 31, striking at 64...this includes games played elsewhere in Asia. If you exclude those Asian games there is an average of 37...home average 22. That large a difference indicates something which Ashwin will be uncomfortable admitting.

Which wicket fell due to excessive turn or bounce?

 

[mastimasti]

Which wicket fell due to excessive turn or bounce?

Honestly I won't recap a 140 over match

 

[FearlessRoar]

A warning by Ashwin as Marco Jansen was trying to back up too much during the 1st Test between South Africa and India.

I'm surprised by how he delivered a warning before, he usually never does it, he just mankads.

 

[BouncerGuy]

Can he reach the 500 test wickets milestone against England?