IPL 2022: R Ashwin's decision to retire out was not sudden, says RR captain Samson

Ravichandran Ashwin retired himself out during Rajasthan Royals' IPL 2022 match against Lucknow Super Giants. However, skipper Sanju Samson is not surprised by it.

Indian all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin pulled off a shocker in the 2022 Indian Premier League (IPL). He retired out while playing for former champion Rajasthan Royals (RR) against new team Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on Sunday. While many were left in dismay, RR skipper Sanju Samson was not surprised by this.

It looked like a planned one as after Ashwin took a single of pacer Avesh Khan, he kept running until he reached the dressing room, while all-rounder Riyan Parag was already walking in. Thus, it was evident that RR was expecting Ashwin to walk out. Meanwhile, Samson stated that RR has been trying different tactics in IPL 2022.

"It's about being Rajasthan Royals. We keep trying different things. We have been talking about it before the season. We thought that if some situation occurred, we could use it. It was a team decision," Samson said later after the match. However, Ashwin's partner, Shimron Hetmyer, had no idea about the move, as he said. "I had no idea about it! He was also a bit tired. It was a good decision, as the kid [Parag] hit a six for us."

Later, RR's Director of Cricket, Kumar Sangakkara, too, acclaimed Ashwin's decision to sacrifice his wicket. He felt that Ashwin did it at the right time, as the all-rounder was already discussing the move with the team from the middle. He also rued not sending Parag ahead of Rassie van der Dussen.

"So, we couldn't get the full benefit of Riyan, but how Ashwin handled that situation, walking in under pressure, he batted, supported the team and then, finally, sacrificed himself in terms of retiring himself out and then, backed it up with a magnificent bowling effort," concluded Sanga.