R Ashwin Was Hurt By Sanjay Manjrekar's Article, What Happened Next Changed Everything
Sanjay Manjrekar had criticised R Ashwin's performance in his column after the off-spinner took only nine wickets in three Tests Down Under at a very poor average of 62 runs per scalp during the 2011-12 series.
- Ravichandran Ashwin found Sanjay Manjrekar's harsh observations about his bowling constructive
- Manjrekar criticised Ashwin's performance after he took only nine wickets in three Tests Down Under
- "His article came to me like a guru and changed my life. There was substance in what he said," Manrjrekar said
The natural reaction to any criticism is anger, but Ravichandran Ashwin found Sanjay Manjrekar's harsh observations about his bowling to be constructive and worked harder in the following years to change his perception. The former India and Mumbai batter-turned-pundit, known for his brusque takes on all things cricket, had criticised Ashwin's performance in his column after the off-spinner took only nine wickets in three Tests Down Under at a very poor average of 62 runs per scalp during the 2011-12 series. India lost that series 0-4.
"After my first Australia tour, Sanjay Manjrekar wrote a long article. When I was returning, I read the whole thing, and after reading it, I got really angry. I actually felt bad. Anger was just a reaction, but I felt really bad. But after that, I slept on the flight and let it go. Back then, I didn't talk to Sanjay much," Ashwin said on 'Jio Hotstar'.
However, he realised that Manjrekar's analysis should be taken in the right spirit and that he could work on certain areas of his bowling and fitness.
"...after coming back home, I worked really hard for the next four years. I wasn't a gifted athlete. I worked very hard, and in 2015, he wrote another article saying that I was bowling so well now and that he wanted me to keep performing like that." Ashwin, in fact, got hold of Manjrekar's number and messaged him about how he felt.
"Then I asked for his number and messaged him that I had felt bad back then, but his article came to me like a guru and changed my life. Because there was substance in what he said. So, if I ever get criticised, I just think about whether there's something to learn from it. If I feel there's something to learn, I take it." Ashwin was an opener during his days in junior cricket but took to off-spin in later years of age-group cricket after watching Harbhajan Singh perform brilliantly in Border-Gavaskar Trophy back in 2001.
"Under Dinesh Karthik's captaincy, I played Under-19 cricket for the first time. Back then, I used to bat a bit, and didn't bowl as much. So, whenever I bowled, I used to bowl with Bhajju Pa's bowling action because I was genuinely a fan.
"When Bhajju Pa came onto the scene, every day I used to copy his action while playing gully cricket. And actually, his dismissal of Ricky Ponting, and the dismissal of Matthew Hayden while bowling from over the stumps, during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, I watched all those matches very closely.
"But I never thought I'd become an off-spinner. In my mind, it was always batting. But when he (Harbhajan) used to bowl, there was something about him, his character, his ability to stand up to everyone and take the fight. So, I really liked that generation. I was genuinely a fan of him, and from there, I never imagined I would come this far."
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
India Cricket Team
Ravichandran Ashwin