A day after retiring from international cricket, veteran Indian spin-bowling all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin emphasized that while he has called time on his international career, he is not done with cricket. “Don’t be surprised if I try and aspire to play for as long as I can,” he said, adding that he would continue playing for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the upcoming IPL 2025 season.

Ashwin announced his retirement from international cricket following the third Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test in Brisbane, which ended in a draw on Wednesday, marking the end of his 14-year-long career playing for India across all formats. He was bought by CSK for Rs 9.75 crore at the mega auction last month.

“I am going to play for CSK, and don’t be surprised if I try and aspire to play for as long as I can. I don’t think Ashwin the cricketer is done, I think Ashwin the Indian cricketer has probably called it time. That’s it,” Ashwin told reporters after arriving in Chennai on Thursday.

Reflecting on his retirement decision, Ashwin shared that it was an “instinctive” move, leaving him with a sense of “relief and satisfaction.” He explained, “It’s emotional for a lot of people. It will be emotional, maybe it will sink in. But for me, it’s a great sense of relief and satisfaction… It had been running in my head for a while but it was very instinctive. I felt it on day 4 and called it on day 5.”

Ashwin ends his illustrious international career with 537 wickets at an average of 24 in 106 Tests, making him India’s second-leading wicket-taker after the legendary Anil Kumble. He also scored six Test centuries and 14 fifties. His last international game was the day-night Test in Adelaide, where he took 1-53.

Additionally, Ashwin played 116 ODIs, claiming 156 wickets, and was a key member of India’s 2011 ODI World Cup and 2013 Champions Trophy-winning teams. He also represented India in 65 T20I matches, taking 72 wickets. In 2016, Ashwin was named the ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Year and Men’s Test Cricketer of the Year, and he was also included in the ICC Test Team of the Decade (2011-2020).