Ashwin’s home truths

A Twitter war among cricket fans is not uncommon, with the social media platform a handy outlet to speak out. And who can be more opinionated than sports fans? What was different about a recent skirmish was that two leading Indian cricketers, IPL teammates in Chennai Superkings and Rising Pune Supergiants, became the focus of a huge controversy. Ravichandran Ashwin, redoubtable winner of the Sir Garfield Sobers Award for cricketer of the year as well as ICC player of 2016, was trolled by Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s fans for not thanking his first T20, ODI and Test skipper for the feats that brought him such accolades. In cricket, controlled largely on the field by the fielding team skipper, there’s no fury like a captain scorned.

But while gratitude is a worthy and humble characteristic, it’s not necessary that it be exhibited in public every time. Ashwin, an engineer, is a thinking man’s cricketer who can assert his individuality. He may have had reason to as Dhoni didn’t contribute to his 2016 Test performances as the flamboyant skipper had long retired from Tests. That things have transformed under a younger skipper and a fresh team that’s doing extremely well as the world’s top Test squad may have led to Ashwin stating simple truths — that none of this was Dhoni’s feat. Dhoni is a legend who made and unmade many cricketers; but his prowess is fading, so too the cult of personality that made him an undisputed leader. For Dhoni, the world has changed since 2015, and his fans simply have to accept it.