India’s premier off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin on Sunday became the joint fastest to take 350 wickets, matching Sri Lankan great Muttiah Muralitharan’s feat in his 66th Test.
Ashwin, who had taken his 27th five-wicket haul in the first innings, castled Theunis de Bruyn with one that turned back sharply from wide outside the off stump for his milestone wicket on day five here.
“Obviously, this things happen over a period of time, we can’t plan for any of these things. I am very lucky in terms of where I got in my career, in terms of racing up in all these records. But it is important to stick to the process and basics, keep it as simple as possible,” Ashwin told BCCI.Tv.
Talking about his preparation, Ashwin said: “I want to keep it as straight forward and simple as possible. I want to be as prepared as possible, trying to tick all the boxes ahead of a game, trying to be in the best possible mental and physical space getting into a match.
“All these are things that I play inside my head and be as prepared as possible getting into a game,” added the wily off-spinner, who has answered his critics with a stellar show in the first Test of the home season.