Former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) spinner Murugan Ashwin announces his retirement ahead of the RCB vs Gujarat Titans IPL 2026 Qualifier 1 match. Ashwin announced his retirement through a heart-touching note on Instagram. He has taken his retirement from the Indian Premier League and domestic cricket, but will continue playing for various other T20 leagues.
Murugan Ashwin played for five different teams throughout his IPL career after making his debut for the Rising Pune Super Giants (now defunct) in IPL 2026. After a successful stint with RPS, the spinner joined RCB ahead of the 2018 season. In his IPL career, Ashwin played for Rising Pune Supergiant, Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals), Mumbai Indians, Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings), Royal Challengers Bengaluru, and Rajasthan Royals, respectively.
Murugan Ashwin has decent IPL stats
In his emotional social media post, the spinner paid gratitude to all five franchises for showing faith in him. He played 44 IPL matches and picked up 35 wickets at an average of 33.20. His economy rate is 8.01 runs per over.
During his stint with RCB, the Tamil Nadu-born picked up three wickets in two matches for an economy rate of 7.57. His best season was with the Kings XI Punjab during the 2020-21 season, when he plucked 10 in 9 games for an economy rate of 7.46. Ashwin made his last IPL appearance on May 7, 2023, for the Rajasthan Royals, against the Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Murugan Ashwin’s bowling stats for RCB:
|
Date  |
M/Inns |
Versus |
Ground |
Batsman Dismissed |
Bowling Figure |
|
29/4/2018 |
second |
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) |
M Chinnaswamy Stadium |
Sunil Narine and Robin Uthappa |
2/36 (4) |
|
5/5/2018 |
second |
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) |
Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium |
Ambati Rayudu |
1/17 (3) |
The spinner shares a heartfelt message
“Since I started playing cricket at the age of six, I have been deeply in love with the game, and it has blessed me abundantly. Cricket has shaped me into the person I am today and allowed me to truly express myself on the field. It’s been an incredible ride so far, and on that note, I would like to share an update with you all,” Ashwin wrote in an Instagram post.
“I would like to announce that I have decided to call time on my domestic cricket career and my journey in the IPL. I will, however, be exploring new challenges and opportunities, and I look forward to continuing to play the game as competitively as always,” he added.
He paid his respect to some of the legends of the game, like Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma, and Ravichandran Ashwin. During his IPL tenure, Murugan Ashwin got the opportunity to play with the top-tier talents of the game.
“My decade-long experience in the IPL allowed me to rub shoulders with some of the greats of the game and play under the leadership of legendary cricketers like MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Rohit Sharma. These experiences have helped me work on myself and become a better cricketer since my debut in 2016,” he mentioned.
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