Kumble furious at Team India management over Ashwin’s unceremonious exit: ‘Deserve a grand farewell. Very disappointed’

Team India is undergoing a potential transition in the longest format. The bells of change began to rang following the third Test in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy, when Ravichandran Ashwin announced a sudden retirement from international cricket. The off-spinner played in the second Test of the series but chose to retire from immediate effect, flying back home the following day.

The suddenness of the move raised questions over the team management’s handling of India great, and former Indian captain, Anil Kumble, too, has expressed his disappointment on the same. In his column for Sportstar, Kumble stated that Ashwin deserved a “grand farewell,” and that there should have been a plan in place for his retirement.

“Players who have contributed for such a long period deserve a grand farewell. They need to be sat down and offered an appropriate plan on how you want them to leave the game. I was very disappointed with the way Ashwin left,” Kumble wrote.

“Many cricketers in the past missed out on a farewell, too. The kind of benchmarks he has set won’t be easy for anyone to live up to. He served Indian cricket with distinction.”

Ashwin retired as India’s second-highest wicket-taker in the longest format, only behind Kumble himself. While Kumble ended his career with 619 wickets to his name, Ashwin had 537.

Expected Ashwin to go past 619

Kumble revealed he told Ashwin that the off-spinner should set his sights on the 600-wicket mark, and then 619.

“I remember telling Ashwin he should get to 600 when he crossed the 500 mark — and then 619. The way he was going, he had a very good chance. He didn’t have a great series against New Zealand, but that was one in 14 years,” said Kumble.

Ashwin endured a rare failure during the series against New Zealand, where he ended with 9 wickets in three Tests. The series also saw India’s first-ever clean-sweep defeat in a three-Test series on home soil, and India’s first home Test series defeat since 2012.