‘A mind like no other’

India all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin is 38. Yet he appears to be just easing into the process of refining his art, ball by ball. His delivery that beat Bangladesh batter Mominul Haque on Day 4 of the first Test in Chennai yesterday was so belligerent that it almost defied any explanation.

It went on an arc, not a big one though, drawing Mominul forward. The delivery's deception came in that arc and the flight. It landed just around off and the turn was big enough to beat the bat but also small enough to hit the off-stump.

Ashwin bagged a six-for, having already notched a ton earlier in the Chennai Test to rescue India from a batting collapse. This was his game and equaling late Shane Warne's record of second most five-wicket hauls (37) in Test cricket was just the cherry on top at Chepauk for the local boy.

He wondered if it was his swansong in his home venue, and then wittily joked, "If that was my swansong, what a swansong." Indeed it would have been.

Ashwin is never shy of laughing one out but the age of 38 hits differently to any international star. "Thirty-eight is different to 35," Ashwin said at the post-match press conference yesterday, adding he has to work doubly hard.

But the maturity of that flight and trajectory was embedded in how the boy from Chennai grew up.

From his age level through to his senior years, he has had the guidance of Sunil Subramaniam, a former first-class cricketer, who also served in many capacities for Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) and also as India team's manager till 2019.

Subramaniam has been Ashwin's wall to bounce ideas off of.

"State academy [TNCA] wanted to find the next generation of spinners and it was when I saw him [Ashwin]. He had height, bounce, and turn and you look the world over, the most potent are tall spinners because they generate bounce," Subramaniam told The Daily Star yesterday.

But that was not all for Subramaniam which makes Ashwin what he is.

"It was not all, because he had a mind that was not like any other. Having worked at that level, I saw kids that are inquisitive but not as intelligent as he was. His intelligence was shining even then and has grown from what I have seen. He is a genuine all-time great, in terms of intelligence too," he added.

Subramaniam said that age-group selectors thought Ashwin would become a great batter.

"He always had that ability to play in the mould like that of V.V.S Laxman. I told him not to ignore batting but said he had the skills to be a spinner. He loved bowling and I found out he was a very good tactician, like in field placing and what to bowl," he said.

Subramaniam talked about the kind of person he found Ashwin to be.

"He won't just ask, he would bombard you and disagree with you. He would cover all the bases. He was bouncing off ideas and he would give his perspectives and the why and how. An outsider would think two mad guys are talking. He is a sponge and soaks what works. He is intellectually aware, and a very sensitive soul. Dumb ideas don't suit him. If I gave a certain view, he could disagree and say 'I can do it this way'. That was a sign," Subramaniam explained the type of character Ashwin is.

Subramaniam was watching quietly from the bowler's end at Chepauk, not even receiving any calls as Ashwin bamboozled delivery after delivery yesterday. "I wanted to watch in private," he said.

Watching the master at work, a bliss for his childhood coach as it is for so many around the world.