Amid all the accolades heaped upon Ravichandran Ashwin following the announcement of his retirement from international cricket, it had to be said that the Indian cricket fraternity witnessed a passing of the baton moment when he wished his fellow off-spin all-rounder Washington Sundar. Shortly after Ashwin announced his decision to retire after the drawn third Test at the Gabba, Sundar took to the social media platforms to pen a heartfelt tribute on Wednesday.
“You are more than a team mate: you have been an inspiration, Ash anna. It has been an honor to share the field and dressing room with you.” “Coming from the same state of Tamil Nadu, I have grown up watching you from the close corners of Chepauk to playing against and alongside you. Every moment has been a privilege. The learnings, both on and off the field, are something I will carry forever. Wishing you success and happiness in whatever comes next.”
In response, Ashwin wrote on his X account on Friday, saying ‘Thuppakiya pudinga Washi!’ “The 2 minutes you spoke that night in the get-together were the best.”
Thupakkiya Pudinga means “hold this gun”. The line Ashwin said to Sundar is a famous dialogue of Tamil superstar Vijay’s latest film Greatest of All Time (G.O.A.T.) in a scene wherein he co-stars with actor Sivakarthikeyan.
Of all his replacements among the options to take on spin-bowling duties for India in the post-Ashwin era, Sundar seems to be the most immediate non-identity replacement; it is no secret that Sundar is the spin-bowling hugely preferred choice for the current Indian coaching setup.
An example of this would be Sundar being picked over Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja for the first Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test in Perth, and taking two wickets in the second innings while scoring four and 29 with the bat, as India won by 295 runs.
