Venkatesh Prasad's bombastic take on 'champion' Ashwin's telling revelation on WTC final snub

A week after the heartbreaking snub in the World Test Championship final where India captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Rahul Dravid picked Umesh Yadav over him, Ravichandran Ashwin broke silence on him not being picked in the playing XI where the team lost by 209 runs to Australia at The Oval. Former India cricketer Venkatesh Prasad later reacted to the viral revelation from Ashwin with a perfect tweet.

In an interview with Indian Express, Ashwin was asked whether he evaluated his skill in the wake of the snub, and he said: “It’s a hard question to answer, right? Because we are standing right after the WTC Final. I would have loved to play because I have played a part in us getting there. Even in the last final I got four wickets and bowled really well. Ever since 2018-19, my bowling overseas has been fantastic and I have managed to win games for the team. I am looking at it as a captain or coach and I’m just talking in hindsight, in their defence. So the last time when we were in England, it was 2-2 with a drawn Test and they would have felt 4 pacers and 1 spinner is the combination in England. That is what they might have thought going into the final."

The interview immediately went viral given that Ashwin missing out was the biggest talk around the Indian team and was regarded as one of the pivotal factors behind the loss. Prasad later gave his take on the big statement made by the veteran Indian offie.

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"So much depth, empathy and awareness. What a champion is @ashwinravi99, on the field and off it," he tweeted.

A lot of former cricketers and experts had come in support of Ashwin, who is presently the No.1 ranked bowler in the world with over 400 Test wickets. He recently ended the home series against Australia in March with 25 wickets in four matches.

"I am 36 years old and honestly, what triggers you what gives you happiness, it changes. Yeah, every time, I get a text message from some of the former senior cricketers, I always get excited and immediately respond. That’s because of how I have seen them as a youngster.

"I felt happy they thought I was good enough to play. But the fact of the matter is, I couldn’t get an opportunity or the world title. I knew I was going to be left out 48 hours before. So for me, my entire goal was to make sure I can contribute to the guys and help us win a title because I played a part in it," Ashwin said.