Former Indian cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin has voiced his concerns over the growing “superstar culture” within the national team, urging players to steer clear of this mindset. According to him, cricketers are not celebrities or film stars but sportspersons whose focus should remain on the game rather than on cultivating a larger-than-life image.
While speaking on “Ash Ki Baat”, his Hindi YouTube channel, R Ashwin said, “It is important to normalise things in Indian cricket. We must not encourage this superstardom and super celebrities within the Indian cricket team. We must normalise all these things going forward. We are cricketers. We are not actors or superstars. We are sportspersons, and we must be someone that the common people should resonate with, and can compare themselves with.”
Ash added, “For example if you are a Rohit Sharma or a Virat Kohli, who have achieved so much. When you hit one more century, it is not just about your achievement anymore. It should be the business as usual, and our goals should be bigger than these achievements.”
In addition to this, Ashwin also raised eyebrows over the Indian team management’s decision to include five spinners—Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja and Varun Chakravarthy in the final squad for the upcoming Champions Trophy.
R Ashwin stated “Five spinners in Dubai? I don’t know. I think we are one spinner too many if not two. The two left-arm spinners are your best all-rounders alongside Hardik Pandya. So both Axar Patel and Ravindra Jadeja are going to play. Hardik will also play and Kuldeep will play. If you want Varun Chakravarthy in the team, then you will have to make a pacer sit out and use Hardik as your second pacer. Else you will have to drop a spinner to bring in a third seamer.”
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His remarks reflect a broader concern about team selection and balance, suggesting that the strategy might not be the most effective approach for the tournament.
We certainly agree that the superstar culture should not be encouraged in cricket, what do you say?
