Ind vs Ban, 1st Test: R Ashwin explains how he approaches batting and bowling differently

He scored 113 off 133 balls, helping the hosts score 376 in the first innings. The bowlers then laid waste to Bangladesh, bowling them out for 149 and taking almost complete control of the game.

Ashwin came in at 144 for 6 and immediately put into practice what he had learned over a long career: that with bat in hand, he needs to be a completely different person from the one who has become one of the greatest bowlers in history.

“At this stage, I am able to sequence that and break them both down and look at them as a cricketer. So when I went in there (to bat) all I wanted to do was settle my game. The mind can play tricks because I am a bowler who bowls 12, 18, 24 balls ahead when I am sequencing. As a batsman, I shouldn’t do that. I just use my experience when I go in. So, now it is more about focusing on the ball and hitting it as I see it.”

“Both. (The England Test) had a lot riding on it. We lost the first one and we got to the second one. Last time when I played in Chennai, I felt like I was making a bit of a comeback in more ways than one. I was a bit here and there. I went to Australia and came back here. That was different and I enjoyed it. I think my batting has improved a lot since that particular match. I worked a lot on how I can maximise my shots, maximise my game. I worked on how I can bowl fast and all that kind of stuff. I’m glad it’s going well.”

Ashwin does this (pushing himself even at 38 with 500 wickets already in his bag) for a very simple reason.

“Happiness. You want to be good. You want to excel. You feel happy at the end of the day. That’s what drives me to achieve. Every time I do well, I feel in a good, happy state of mind. That’s what you embark on this journey for. You want to do well. You want to excel on the world stage. People watch you and you feel happy about it.”

There was a time, however, when Ashwin could not find a way to play cricket with this freedom. “I used to criticise myself earlier, but now not so much because I have put a lot of pressure on myself now. Not just myself, but there was pressure from outside as well. I used to find happiness in answering my critics with my performance or in the press conference, but now it is not like that. The most important thing for me today is to enjoy my game, to be present in the moment, to play cricket with a smile on my face. Four or five years ago I made a promise to myself, with great difficulty, that from then on I would not answer to anyone and would play for my own happiness. And I have kept that promise till date.”

As is often the case with his delivery, Ashwin had Jadeja as his partner throughout the course of a match-changing 199-run partnership for the seventh wicket.

“You don’t make plans for these things. Jaddu is a cricketer who has evolved very well. I always envy him. I have made that very clear. He is very talented. He has found ways to maximise his potential. He keeps it very simple. He can repeat it day in and day out. I wish I was him, but I am happy to be myself. He is an exceptionally good cricketer. I am happy for him. Similarly, in many ways, watching him bat over the last few years has given me an idea of ​​how much I can improve. We have both grown together. We have both done some special things. We really value each other at this stage. We are both enjoying each other’s success more than ever.”