Ashwin rushes home to visit 'unwell mother'; pulls out of 3rd Test

After picking up his coveted 500th Test wicket on Day 2 of the third Test in Rajkot, Ravichandran Ashwin withdrew from the ongoing Test on the same day itself.

A BCCI statement said, Ashwin will be unavailable for the remaining Test due to a family emergency. As per BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla, Ashwin’s mother is unwell.

“Ravichandran Ashwin has withdrawn from the Test squad, effective immediately due to a family medical emergency. In these challenging times, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the team fully supports Ashwin.

“The BCCI extends its heartfelt support to the champion cricketer and his family. The health and well-being of the players and their loved ones are of utmost importance. The Board requests respect for the privacy of Ashwin and his family as they navigate through this challenging time.

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“The Board and the team will continue to provide any necessary assistance to Ashwin and will keep the lines of communication open to offer support as needed. Team India appreciates the understanding and empathy of the fans and media during this sensitive period,” read the statement.

Following Ashwin's withdrawal, Shukla revealed on X that Ashwin's mother was unwell. "Wishing speedy recovery of mother of @ashwinravi99. He has to rush and leave Rajkot test to Chennai to be with his mother,” Shukla wrote on X.

Ashwin reached the milestone 500th scalp when he removed Zak Crawley during England's first innings in Rajkot. Ashwin addressed the post-match press conference after the end of day's play. He flew back to Chennai following that to attend to his mother. 

Apart from Ashwin, two other players withdrew from the ongoing series due to ‘personal reasons’. While Harry Brook opted out of the series due to ‘personal reasons’, Virat Kohli too made himself unavailable for selection due to personal reasons. Kohli first opted out of the first two Test and later from the rest of the series.