Ashwin recalls Dhoni’s help in testing times

Despite these qualities, there were times when Ashwin was not in the best frame of mind. It happened twice - once during the 2011 World Cup and then in the 2013 Champions Trophy. And on both occasions, Ashwin was helped out by a senior cricketer.

The off-spinner, who already has 365 wickets in 71 Tests, said Sachin Tendulkar boosted his morale when he was down during the 2011 World Cup. “Sachin came up to me and said, you’re bowling really well in the nets, bowl like this when you get your game as well,” Ashwin told WV Raman in a Star Sports new series ‘Mind Masters by MFORE.

Harbhajan Singh was India’s premier off-spinner in the 2011 and Ashwin had to sit out on majority of the games.

When he was once again not in the best of mental space during the 2013 Champions Trophy, captain Dhoni came to his rescue. “Dhoni came and told me in the first game of the CT 2013 that I was bowling fantastic even though I didn’t pick up a wicket,” Ashwin said.

The first episode witnessed a plethora of cricketers sharing their thoughts on mind skills training through a video which included MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Mike Hussey and many more.