Ashwin’s mid-series retirement was ‘funny’, says former Australia wicketkeeper Brad Haddin | Cricket News

In a series that marked a spree of lows despite winning the first Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Perth against Australia, India’s biggest jolt occurred after the third Test in Brisbane as veteran off-spinner R Ashwin called time on his international career after missing out on two games in the series. Former Australia wicket-keeper Brad Haddin, however, found the timing of Ashwin’s retirement ‘funny’.
With the series locked at 1-1 after Gabba, India went onto drop both the Boxing Day and New Year’s Test in Melbourne and Sydney before conceding the trophy back to Australia after 10 years.
Haddin said that Ashwin wouldn’t have been too pleased after being snubbed from the side for two games which would have led him to the retirement call, bluntly stating that the India great was a ‘jack of not getting picked’.
“The first three Test matches, they played three different spinners, so they arrived here not knowing what their game style is going to be around here. It shouldn’t be a shock when you get here, they have played here enough, they have success here so the Ashwin retiring mid-series was a funny one. I don’t think we’ve heard the last of that yet. I think he was just jack of not getting picked,” Haddin said on the Willow Talk podcast.
Ashwin retired as India’s second-highest international (765) and Test (537) wicket-taker behind Anil Kumble across a 14-year-long India career.
“I think he sees himself as the number one spinner. His record is elite, and he just went, ‘You know what I’m not sitting on the bench. If you can’t decide that I’m your best spinner, I’m done. I’ve played enough. I don’t need this.’ I don’t think we have heard the end of that,” Haddin said.

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