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Ravichandran Ashwin came to prominence with his stellar performances for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the IPL. He was with the side from the inaugural season and blossomed under MS Dhoni. Such was his impact that he quickly went on to become India’s main spinner across all three formats and grew into one of India's greatest Test bowlers.
Ashwin has always enjoyed himself at his home ground at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, even while playing for Delhi Capitals, Punjab Kings and now the Rajasthan Royals (RR).
He recently gave a glimpse of his ability and his match-winning prowess on the spin-friendly Chennai surface. In RR's last match against the Chennai Super Kings, Ashwin once again stood out with his excellent bowling. He ended with figures of 2/25 runs in four overs.
We take a look at R Ashwin’s best performances in Chennai in the IPL over the years:
#3 3 for 16 vs KKR, 2010
On a tricky track in Chennai, KKR captain Sourav Ganguly opted to bat first but things went downhill pretty quickly for them. Ashwin was introduced into the attack early in the game and made an immediate impression.
He tricked Chris Gayle as the West Indian danced down the track only to be beaten by the turn and bounce. MS Dhoni did the rest behind the stumps. He kept the pressure and went on to pick the wickets of Brendon McCullum and David Hussey. None of the KKR batters were able to read Ashwin’s variations and they could only manage to score 139 runs.
In response, CSK romped home to victory with nine wickets to spare thanks primarily to Suresh Raina and his counter-attacking knock of 78 off 39 deliveries.
#2 3 for 16 vs RCB, 2011
During the 2011 IPL final, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) set a daunting target of 206 runs against a strong Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) batting line-up, led by Chris Gayle, who had scored 608 runs in the tournament.
Ashwin opened the bowling with a short-of-length delivery that turned away from Gayle, forcing him to play inside the line. With a change in pace on the third delivery, Ashwin induced an outside edge off Gayle's bat, dismissing him early. The wicket proved to be crucial as RCB's batting line-up fell apart, eventually losing the match by 58 runs.
Ashwin then went on to get rid of Mayank Agarwal and Daniel Vettori and ended RCB’s hope in the final as CSK clinched the title by winning the final with a comprehensive margin of 58 runs.
#1 3 for 23 vs Delhi Daredevils, 2012
Chennai Super Kings took on Delhi Daredevils in the second qualifier back in IPL 2012. Murali Vijay led the charge for Chennai with a thumping century. His innings of 113 off 58 balls powered CSK to a mammoth total of 222 for 5.
In response, Delhi never got going and when Ashwin decided to spin a web around the Delhi batters, the result was a foregone conclusion. Ashwin accounted for Andre Russell, Mahela Jayawardene and Umesh Yadav to finish with three wickets for 23 runs. CSK thumped Delhi by 86 runs to progress further in the IPL playoffs.
