R Ashwin has expressed his surprise at being picked in India’s squad for the 2023 World Cup and suggested that the upcoming tournament could be his last for India.

Speaking in a TV interview ahead of India’s warm-up match against England in Guwahati today (September 30), Ashwin said he “would have thought you were joking” if he had been told ahead of time that he would be playing in the World Cup.

“Massive credit to Rohit Sharma and the team management for showing faith in me,” continued Ashwin. “Life is full of surprises. I honestly wasn’t thinking I would be here. I’m happy with the trust the team management has shown and obviously, circumstances have ensured that I’m here today. But nevertheless, I’ve always maintained that enjoying my game is the prime motive for me over the last four or five years.”

The veteran off-spinner was added to India’s squad earlier this week to replace Axar Patel, who failed to recover from a quadricep strain in time for the tournament. Ashwin has only played four ODIs in the last six years after he was dropped from India’s regular squad in 2017. He played two games in the 2011 World Cup and was part of India’s side in the 2015 tournament, but played no part in the 2019 competition.

Former India teammate Dinesh Karthik was conducting the pre-play interview with Ashwin, and the off-spinner joked that his bond with Karthik was why he agreed to the interview.

“I told the media manager that he shouldn’t be putting me in front of the camera for a while now,” said Ashwin. “But this was one of those situations where he said Dinesh Karthik is interviewing you so I obliged the opportunity.”

Ashwin was included in two of the three ODIs India played against Australia ahead of their final run into the tournament. They were the first matches he played in the format for 18 months, having previously played two matches against South Africa in January 2022. He took three wickets in India’s win in the second ODI at Indore, dismissing David Warner, Marnus Labuschagne and Josh Inglis.

“All you can do is turn the ball both ways and I think that I already have the ability to do that,” said Ashwin on what could make him successful at this World Cup. “It’s all about making subtle variations and also dealing with pressure in these sorts of tournaments. I think pressure is of paramount importance to most players in this tournament.

“How you deal with it will probably dictate how the tournament goes for yourself and for the team. As far as I’m concerned, like I said, being in a good space and trying to enjoy the game will hold me in good stead I reckon.

“I want to enjoy this tournament and I don’t know but I’ve kept saying this, this could be my last tournament playing a World Cup for India or something. There have been a lot of surprises over the last few years, so for me going all in and enjoying the tournament is of utmost importance.”

Shortly after Ashwin’s interview, rain started falling in Guwahati, delaying the start of the match after Rohit won the toss and elected to bat first.

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