Ravi Ashwin tweets on mankading: The Kings XI Punjab captain had earlier posted a series of tweets on what mankading means to him.
During the eighth match of the Commonwealth Bank Tri-series 2012 between India and Sri Lanka at Brisbane, India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin had attempted to mankad Sri Lanka batsman Lahiru Thirimanne. However, the then India captain Virender Sehwag taking back the appeal gave another chance to the batsman.
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Seven years down the line, Ashwin once again attempted to affect a similar dismissal in the Indian Premier League to dismiss Rajasthan Royals wicket-keeper batsman Jos Buttler. Given the kind of dismissal involved, a heated exchange happened on the field between the bowler and the batsman.
However, with Ashwin himself leading Kings XI Punjab at the moment, he ended up appealing for the dismissal. After Buttler was given out, the KXIP captain faced a lot of heat from some former and current cricketers on social media platform Twitter.
If the rules of the game are taken into consideration, whatever Ashwin did was correct. However, cricket is a game which is (at times, unfortunately) often associated with “spirit of cricket”. Ashwin’s critics accused him of violating the spirit of the game. It is worth mentioning that the criticism was supported by several interpretations of the incident.
Post the dismissal, a Twitter thread has started doing the rounds on the platform. The series of tweets involves Ashwin in conversation with a few users where he is seen advocating for mankading.
Read Ashwin’s old tweets below:
@SriniMama16 it was indeed cruel,let’s just say the rules are made just for the hec https://t.co/9I4bBUe1jE balls can kill,shall we ban it?
— Ashwin Ravichandran (@ashwinravi99) February 2, 2016
@SriniMama16 spirit of humanity.Slog overs should empower the bowlers to push the front line.
— Ashwin Ravichandran (@ashwinravi99) February 2, 2016
@ashwinravi99 @SriniMama16 Ash he neither supported Mankad nor opposed it. Read his other tweets. He has talked about both pros and cons. 😊
— Aishu Haridas (@imaishu_) February 2, 2016
@ImAishu_ @SriniMama16 I m not addressing anyone.Popular opinions don’t always mean they are right
— Ashwin Ravichandran (@ashwinravi99) February 2, 2016
@ashwinravi99 @ImAishu_ @SriniMama16 question – have you ever considered using mankad as a strategy? Is it ever on ur mind while running in?
— Karthik Lakshmanan (@lk_karthik) February 2, 2016
@lk_karthik @ImAishu_ @SriniMama16 every single day,I can’t push the front line,why should a batsmen gain yards.
— Ashwin Ravichandran (@ashwinravi99) February 2, 2016
@Crownish @lk_karthik @ImAishu_ @SriniMama16 batsmen can warn the bowler about hitting him for a 6??
— Ashwin Ravichandran (@ashwinravi99) February 2, 2016
@ashwinravi99 @lk_karthik @ImAishu_ @SriniMama16 but warning saves you from unrequited criticism
— Monish (@Crownish) February 2, 2016
@Crownish @lk_karthik @ImAishu_ @SriniMama16 criticism?..I am saying it needs to be applauded.Popular opinions aren’t always right
— Ashwin Ravichandran (@ashwinravi99) February 2, 2016
How Twitter reacted on Buttler’s dismissal:
If you nick the ball, you should walk. That’s the Spirit of the Game. How many actually walk though??? Think 🤔 #Ashwin #Buttler #RRvKXIP #IPL
— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) March 25, 2019
@imVkohli @bhogleharsha @BCCI what @ashwinravi99 did in the #IPL12 today begets a question, to what extent is winning important? Secondly, what do we stand for as a cricketing nation? Is this what the fans aspire to see? Play hard dears, not cheap.
— ashish mathur (@mathurbajpai) March 25, 2019
The Laws state it’s OUT … Still doesn’t mean I like it at all … just think it’s a bad look for the game … I would prefer a 1 warning rule then after that it’s a free for all … only my opinion so don’t abuse please … or you can if you want .. I am not arsed #OnOn #IPL
— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) March 25, 2019
Punjab win match but may have lost a lot of fans for controversial manner of Butler’s dismissal. It was legal, `spirit of cricket’ is a contentious concept, yet it was uncool. That said Rajasthan caving in so dramatically was surprising. Credit to Punjab bowlers for not giving up
— Cricketwallah (@cricketwallah) March 25, 2019
Kings XI Punjab ended up defeating Rajasthan Royals by 14 runs.
