SRH vs RR: Ravichandran Ashwin reveals he played the first half of IPL 2024 with an abdomen injury

Senior India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has revealed that he played the first half of the IPL 2024 season with an abdomen injury. 

Ravichandran Ashwin was in action last night during the Eliminator match between the Rajasthan Royals and the Royal Challengers Bengaluru. The Narendra Modi stadium in Ahmedabad had played host to the game wherein the inaugural champions defeated the 3-time runners-up by 4 wickets. 

With that victory, Rajasthan moved one step closer to entering their 2nd IPL final in the last 3 seasons. To ensure they reach the finale and set up a meeting with Kolkata Knight Riders, RR will need to beat Pat Cummins' Sunrisers Hyderabad tomorrow. Ravichandran Ashwin will be returning to his hometown Chennai for the match. 

What did Ashwin say about his health? 

While speaking in the post-match presentation after winning the Man of the Match award, Ravichandran Ashwin admitted that he is aging rapidly. The veteran off-spinner revealed that he faced a lot of difficulty in managing his body in the first half of IPL 2024 due to an abdomen injury he had suffered before the season. 

"In the first half, I felt my body wasn’t moving too well for the first half of the season. I had an abdomen injury and I am aging as well." - Ashwin said in the post-match presentation in Ahmedabad. 

Ravi Ashwin then shed light on his lean patch in the early days of the season, stating just how difficult it was for him to transition from Test cricket to T20 cricket. Before the IPL had begun, Ashwin was on National duty for the home 5-match Test series against England from January to March.  

In that series, Ravichandran Ashwin had finished as the highest wicket-taker with 26 wickets to his name. He had also become just the second Indian bowler to scalp a remarkable 500 wickets in the longest format and joined the legendary Anil Kumble on that list. So it wasn't an easy task for Ashwin to switch from red to white ball with a snap but with, he settled in well. 

"To come into the tournament from Test cricket was difficult, I needed some time to get that bowling rhythm. But once you have committed to your franchise, you want to go through with the season." - Ashwin added. 

Ashwin expresses confidence in the RR team ahead of Qualifier 2 

The Rajasthan Royals had entered the IPL 2024 play-offs is not the best of fashions. Before their final league game against Kolkata got abandoned, the Royals had won just 1 out of their 5 games against Lucknow, Hyderabad, Delhi, and Chennai. Not many were backing them to even beat Bengaluru last night as the South Indians were in far better form as well as momentum. 

On that note, Ravichandran Ashwin stated that Rajasthan's biggest strength is perhaps their youth and the experienced players in the team. The off-spinner, who claimed figures of 2/19 in his 4 overs last night, feels the team has got the right momentum heading into the last stage. 

"I think our greatest strength is the exuberance of youth and the experience we have got to support that. We have the right momentum for this team going forward." - Ashwin concluded.