On December 18, 2024, the cricketing world was left stunned by the news of Ravi Ashwin's sudden announcement of retirement from international cricket following the conclusion of the Gabba Test. His retirement triggered an unprecedented wave of wishes that poured in from several corners of the cricket world, most notably from leading cricketing experts and former cricketers.

In a bid to pay a departing tribute to the spin-bowling wizard, Australian skipper Pat Cummins and top Aussie spinner Nathan Lyon gifted a signed Australian Test jersey on Wednesday. The indications of Ashwin's retirement became all too clear when he walked out with India captain Rohit Sharma and accompanied him during the press conference to address his international retirement.

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Cummins and Lyon present the signed jersey

A video shared by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), captured the very moment when the two Aussie players went up to Ashwin to hand a signed Australia Test jersey in the hallway of the iconic Gabba in Brisbane.

While giving him the signed shirt, Cummins was reportedly heard saying the following:

"Well done mate, thank you, you have been great."

Watch here:

A Legend Bids Adieu to International Cricket 👏👏

Hear what R Ashwin’s parting words were to the Indian dressing room 🎥🔽#TeamIndia | @ashwinravi99 https://t.co/6wtwdDOmzX

— BCCI (@BCCI) December 18, 2024

A peek into Ashwin's illustrious career

Ashwin started his Test journey in 2011 with a match against the West Indies, after which he established himself as a prominent player in red-ball cricket. Over the course of 106 Test matches, he bagged an impressive total of 537 wickets, which includes 37 instances of five-wicket hauls, while also accumulating 3,503 runs. 

Moreover, Ashwin's exploits with the bat also helped him evolve as a technically potent all-rounder across all formats. Ashwin currently holds the record of being the fastest Indian bowler to claim 350 Test wickets.

Veteran Australia spinner Nathan Lyon applauded star India spinner R Ashwin, considering the significant influence Ashwin has had on his career as well. The Australian spinner also named Ashwin as one of his mentors, particularly during his preparations for tours to India as well. However, Lyon has often seen footage of R Ashwin's bowling on the subcontinent's spin-friendly pitches to know his strategies and improve his own game too.

"He's taught me a lot," Lyon admitted. "I'm a big believer that the players you compete against are your best coaches. I've watched a lot of his footage heading over to India, the way he goes about it here in Australia, and see if I can pick up anything."

R Ashwin to play a key role for India

However, both the bowlers have done well in their respective careers, with Lyon generating overspin and bounce on Australian pitches, while R Ashwin has the ability to bowl relentlessly with many variations, including his famous carrom ball as well.

Reflecting on this, Nathan Lyon jokingly shared that star Indian all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja's close watch on media reports, adding, "I know Jadeja reads all of this stuff, so I can't really share all my secrets." However, he did share insight into his approach: "My big thing is spinning up the back of the ball and getting bounce, but it's a hard craft to be able to do that in Australia. Your margin for error is extremely small."

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As the Test series approaches, Nathan Lyon also opened up on the challenge of facing a world-class Indian side. Despite Australia's recent win over India in the World Test Championship final, Lyon said that India have the upper hand in the Border-Gavaskar series, with the Australians failing to register a Test series win in India in nearly a decade as well.

"India's got the wood over us in the past few series" - Nathan Lyon

"India's got the wood over us in the past few series, but if you're looking at the World Test Championship (final) in England, we were able to beat them there, and I know that should give us a bit of confidence heading into this summer," Nathan Lyon concluded. "I feel like we're on the journey to becoming a great team. We're not there yet, there's a bit of work to do, but we have the opportunity to do something pretty special this summer."

However, India, currently ranked No. 2 in the world, will try to bounce back from a 3-0 series whitewash to New Zealand as well. And cricket fans can expect thrilling encounters between the two sides as well.

India's veteran spinner, Ravichandran Ashwin, is all set to resume his international season with the upcoming home Test matches against Bangladesh. With 516 wickets in his Test career, Ashwin has his eyes set on climbing the ladder of all-time wicket-takers. As he prepares for series against Bangladesh and New Zealand, the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia looms on the horizon, where Ashwin aims to leave an indelible mark on cricket history.

Ashwin’s record-breaking ambitions in Bangladesh and beyond

Ravichandran Ashwin, one of India's greatest spinners, has been a consistent force in Test cricket, especially at home. Since 2021, Ashwin has taken 109 wickets in home Tests, far ahead of his closest competitor, Ravindra Jadeja, who has 56 wickets. With his total of 516 wickets in Test cricket, Ashwin is currently ninth on the all-time list of wicket-takers. He is closing in on legends like Courtney Walsh (519), Nathan Lyon (530), and Glenn McGrath (563), with the real possibility of surpassing Lyon's tally in the upcoming home series against Bangladesh and New Zealand.

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Home dominance and the Border-Gavaskar Trophy

Ashwin is not only looking to climb the all-time wicket-takers' list but is also gunning for another milestone at home. With 363 wickets in home Tests, he is chasing Stuart Broad’s record of 398 wickets in home conditions. If Ashwin maintains his stellar form, he could surpass Broad in 2024. Ashwin's recent performance against England, where he took 26 wickets in 5 matches, shows that he is in fine touch. The upcoming matches in Bangladesh and New Zealand will serve as a precursor to the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, where Ashwin hopes to continue his dominance on Australian soil, where he has taken 39 wickets in 10 Tests.

With a strong support cast that includes Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Jadeja, and Axar Patel, Ashwin is poised for a stellar season ahead. The spinner is inching closer to securing his legacy as one of the greatest Test bowlers of all time, with the World Test Championship Final at Lord's as a possible crowning achievement.

Playing a hundred Tests is a rare feat, and to play a hundred Tests without missing a single game in between is even more uncommon. While the last week has been a good one for Nathan Lyon, with the bat as he drove and flicked Stuart Broad on Australia’s way to a very famous win the upcoming Test will see Nathan Lyon reach a landmark that required a lot more hard work. There is a very small group of cricketers who have played a hundred Tests without missing a Test in between and Nathan Lyon in all likelihood is set to join that list.

Two Australians have done this before him and Nathan Lyon is set to be the first specialist bowler to do the same. The record is proof of his consistency as he carried Australia’s spin attack for the best part of the last decade, allowing Australia to consistently field a player who turned out to be a constant in their line-up. Regardless of the conditions, Nathan Lyon with his accuracy and consistency has ensured he is a part of the side to hold one end up and exploit on the wearing pitches as the Test progresses.

He has played a total of 122 Tests and with how he is going, Lyon could well target the record held by Ponting and Waugh who have 168 Test caps. His run began back in 2013 at Lords, where he is to complete his 100th consecutive Test. Before the run, Lyon took part in 22 Test matches but with early consistency issues, Lyon had a brief spell out of the side.

Since then though, Lyon has not looked back. He has forged a career as one of the greatest spinners in his era, and probably Australia’s best spinner after Shane Warne. His success helped Australia big time as they struggled to find a spinner after Shane Warne retired in 2006-2007. In the interim, Australia tried Nathan Hauritz, Jason Krejza, Cameron White, Ashton Agar, Michael Beer and Steve Smith as well. Neither managed to impress and that led to Australia struggling for control for a good four years as they lost an Ashes at home and a series to South Africa.

Australia though will be hoping they don’t find themselves in a similar situation when Lyon hangs up his boots as they would be looking to bring the likes of Todd Murphy in as seamlessly as possible. Lyon is on the cusp of another milestone coming to Lords. With 495 wickets, another 5 wickets would see him join Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath and four other bowlers on five hundred wickets.

Lyon’s run though has not been straightforward. There was a brief period in 2020-2021 where his ability to be the lead spinner was questioned as Nathan Lyon struggled against India at home. In the next WTC Cycle though Lyon went through a dream period finishing as the leading wicket-taker and is off to a really good start in the current cycle as well.

His bowling in the subcontinent too has consistently increased with Lyon getting some significant hauls on his last tours to India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan. He was particularly impressive in India, a place where he tends to struggle with a lot more turn than he is used to on offer. His improvement has been instrumental to his milestone with Nathan Lyon consistently churning out balls that can drift and keep batters questioning their style of play. Throughout a long career which has seen Nathan Lyon turn his shoulder more thant 30000 times, Nathan Lyon has carved a story on his endurance as a spin bowler.

Rohit Sharma’s expression said it all when Cheteshwar Pujara was batting with the tail. Mid-off was up, but Cheteshwar Pujara continued to block Nathan Lyon, who had claimed most of the Indian batting line-up by then with some expert bowling on a track with a lot of spin. At 144-7 India were struggling to put up a total. They conceded a considerable lead in the first innings and collapsed in the second as well.

In the second innings though, Cheteshwar Pujara was putting up a masterclass on how to bat on a spin friendly track. In his own traditional method, he was blocking Nathan Lyon out ball after ball as he has done on countless occasions over the last decade. However, with Wickets falling at the other end, Pujara needed to go harder, and he did, taking Nathan Lyon on in a manner he normally wouldn’t against Lyon.

Through their careers, Nathan Lyon and Cheteshwar Pujara had some of the fiercest battles. No batter managed to play Lyon in Australia as well as Pujara has, while Lyon, from his side has managed to strangle Pujara in his own ways when he came to India. 21 encounters, 13 dismissals and an average of 62 shows that Nathan Lyon has managed to get Pujara, but only after Cheteshwar Pujara blocked the life out of him.

Their battle began back in 2013, when Australia toured India, and peaked in 2017, when Pujara emerged as India’s best batter in the series. In 2018-2019 he went on to dominate Lyon as Lyon was left asking if Pujara was bored of batting. In 2020-2021, Lyon did get the better of Pujara as Pujara struggled to score runs, but only after facing a considerable number of deliveries.

The current series and a potential WTC Final though could be the last time the pair take each other on in what has been a fierce decade long battle. It’s been a different one this series though. Throughout the series, Pujara has been intent on scoring runs at a quicker pace, as he has been after his comeback to the Indian Team. He was out sweeping in the first Test, and in the second Test, Pujara did not hesitate to step down hit the ball over mid-on.

Unlike before, where Pujara would block bowlers out, Cheteshwar Pujara has been a lot more busy, particularly against Nathan Lyon. Stepping out, rotating strike and using the flick has become a new style when compared to Pujara’s old approach where he’d pad Nathan Lyon’s deliveries outside off. He continued to play percentage Cricket, which is something he does so well, but this time with a little more urgency, walking on a thin line against a raging Nathan Lyon, who was finding some incredible purchase and was in rhythm.

His control percentage against Nathan Lyon was high as normal, despite Nathan Lyon getting the better of the Indian batting line-up. As always, Nathan Lyon went for the traditional leg side strangle, bowling with a leg-side dominant field. With Cheteshwar Pujara stepping up, he added even more protection on the leg-side as the innings progressed. Lyon continued to build pressure, but Pujara continued to soak it in an release pressure with occasional breakaways shots.

As he did in Adelaide five years ago, Pujara started patiently, watched partners come and go, and batted with the tail. In Adelaide though, Pujara managed to score at a really quick rate after a slow start. Here, he faced 80 odd for his first 40 and then went on a stretch of 51 balls only scoring nine runs. Wickets kept going and the pressure of setting a target was building. Nathan Lyon though gave up on looking for the outside edge and threw it all on the leg-side trap.

To his fortune, and Pujara’s misfortune. Cheteshwar Pujara’s attack after 50 didn’t last long. A stunner at leg-slip saw the back of him ending another fierce battle between Lyon and Pujara. The pair have faced each other in a total of 1265 deliveries with Pujara making 561 runs and Lyon claiming him 13 times. In the period between their careers, no batter-bowler pair has faced each other as many times. Likewise, no batter has scored as many runs against one bowler as Pujara did against Lyon and barring Stuart Broad and David Warner, no bowler managed to dismiss a batter as many times in the last decade.

With both of them approaching the latter stages of the career, we could well be seeing their last set of battles. The next Border Gavaskar Trophy is in 2024 and the pair will be 37 by then. With both of them playing only one format they could still be around, but form and selection may have a say. For now though, they have a couple more battles to go, and fans can only hope the upcoming battle are as good as the Indore one, which had both players fight out in a battle of patience.

The delivery from Nathan Lyon stayed on the surface, turned sharply back toward Pujara, stayed a little low, and didn’t give him time to adjust. As India lost their top three for the lowest score of the series (36), he had his stumps shaken.

The Border-Gavaskar Trophy’s third Test match between India and Australia in Indore was by far the most exciting and unexpected start yet. In the first over of the Test, Mitchell Starc hit Rohit Sharma twice, but on-field umpire Nitin Menon gave the India captain a not out, and Australia did not review either time. But the India captain didn’t last long as he tried to hit Matthew Kuhnemann out of the park in the sixth over and got stumped.

Shubman Gill, Rohit’s opening partner and KL Rahul’s replacement for this Test, got off to a great start against the seamers, but Kuhnemann bowled him out in his next over.

The Indore pitch made it abundantly clear that the batters would not have it easy, as evidenced by the fact that the ball turned both times. Australia was playing three finger-spinners, just like Delhi, and there was a lot of bounce and sharp turn.

Therefore, India’s No. 3 Cheteshwar Pujara’s attempt to play an offside punch through against the turn was doubly surprising.

It was the ninth over’s second ball. It was pitched short and outside off the stump by Nathan Lyon. No one would have questioned Pujara’s quick rocking back to square cut delivery through the opposite side on any other surface. However, this Indore pitch was unique. In the initial hour, it was providing the most turn, 4.8 degrees. There was at least a couple of degrees less on the other two tests in the series.

The ball caught on to the surface, turned sharply back toward Pujara, stayed a little low, and didn’t give him time to adjust. As India lost their top three for the lowest score of the series (36), he had his stumps shaken.

When Pujara returned to the hut for 1, the expression on captain Rohit Sharma’s face said it all.

Ravindra Jadeja, the man in form with both the bat and the ball, hit another short one straight to the cover fielder, giving Lyon yet another wicket.

Shreyas Iyer, one of the best spinners, returned a ball to Kuhnemann’s stumps for a duck, giving Kuhnemann yet another breakthrough as India lost half their team for 44.