Currently, he is the fifth-leading wicket-taker in the competition.
In a massive development ahead of the 2026 auction, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin has retired from IPL. He had already retired from the international arena during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy last year, but continued featuring in the league.
Fittingly, his IPL career ends with CSK, the franchise where it all started for him back in 2009. CSK bought him for a whopping INR 9.75 crores in the IPL 2025 auction, but he couldn’t perform according to expectations and was off-colour for most of the season.
Overall, he featured for as many as five IPL franchises – CSK, Rising Pune Supergiants, Punjab Kings (then Kings XI Punjab), Delhi Capitals (DC), and Rajasthan Royals (RR) – during his 221-match career. He snared 187 wickets at an average of 30.22 and conceded 7.20 runs per over in 217 innings, including a four-wicket haul.
Additionally, Ashwin scored 833 runs at an average of 13.01 and a strike rate of 118.15 in 98 outings, comprising a fifty. Currently, he is the fifth-leading wicket-taker in the competition and has won two IPL titles with CSK in 2010 and 2011, where his own performances were pivotal in the team’s title-winning campaigns.
| Bowler | Wickets |
| Yuzvendra Chahal | 221 |
| Bhuvneshwar Kumar | 198 |
| Piyush Chawla | 192 |
| Sunil Narine | 192 |
| Ravichandran Ashwin | 187 |
Ravichandran Ashwin didn’t give any hints of ending his IPL career, and this news comes as a surprise. However, the move seems pragmatic for him, given his age and current status as a T20 bowler.
Despite having numerous variations and skills in his armour, most IPL teams have moved on from specialists, and he is unlikely to fetch a big deal after a poor season. His batting has not been utilised properly, and Ashwin has his limitations as a T20 batter, even if a few franchises promoted him for some matches.
Still, several overseas leagues are open to welcoming such players due to the quality they bring and the viewership that the involvement of Indian players brings. For instance, as many as 13 Indian players registered for the upcoming SA20 auction, and a change in pattern is already visible in the retirements of the likes of Unmukt Chand in the past.
Ashwin still has a lot to offer and can be an asset in any foreign league, and it won’t be a bad idea to explore more opportunities now that he has retired from international cricket. He has always been ahead of the curve and must have thought along these lines before making such a massive decision.
