I have learnt to give myself a little more empathy, says Ashwin

Ravichandran Ashwin believes that he doesn't have a point to prove to anyone. Ahead of the Test series against West Indies, he made his presence at National Cricket Academy (NCA) at Bangalore to prove his fitness.

The 32-year-old was injured during the third Test against England and wasn't the same thereafter. Before announcing the Test squad for the West Indies series, Ashwin underwent a fitness test at NCA and once he cleared it, he was included in the side.

Speaking about his rollercoaster year, he told Cricketnext: "There is a very spiritual way of looking at it and saying everything happens for the good. But for me, it really is one of the good things to have happened because I have learnt a lot about myself. Like I told you, I have learnt to give myself a little bit more empathy – I have never been someone who has tried to look for sympathy. I have just tried and learnt to be a lot more realistic.

"I am a lot more relaxed up in my head. I am able to handle different sorts of expectations and different requirements in a much more subtle manner. The brain and the body give up on you when you try to be too intense all the time. I am a lot more relaxed that way. That is one of the reasons why I think I did really well in the early part of the England tour. It was more about my bowling, enjoying my cricket," he added.

The 32-year-old currently has 530 wickets in the international cricket. He also said that he is good enough and ready to give his best when an opportunity comes.

"The focus is going to be more on that because a lot of people can substantiate my career going here and there but you don’t get 530 international wickets without being good, and I have got that. I know that I am good enough. It is just about having the patience to hang in there, behind the doors, and when the opportunity comes, try and be in the best mental space to be able to take it," the Tamil Nadu cricketer said.

As fitness is one of the important things in the cricketer's life, Ashwin is keenly working on his fitness. He said that it is always a challenge to keep our body away from an injury.

"Physical space is also very important, that’s what I have been working on. These things happen in every cricketer’s career. My body has been a bit of a challenge as well over the last year or so. Different parts have given up at different times and it is a bit of a challenge. But like I said, everything happens for the good. I try and look at it that way and try and create a positive spin around it," he concluded.