Team man Ashwin happy to be fifty not out

India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin said he was thrilled to have played fifty Tests for his country after India beat Sri Lanka in Galle.

Ashwin took three wickets in the contest moving his Test tally to 279.

Earlier this year Ashwin became the fastest player to claim 250 Test wickets but the spinner insists personal achievements don’t matter to him.

He said after play: “For me it’s always teams first. Since my childhood days when I dreamt of playing for India I had one goal and that is to take Indian cricket to greater heights.

“I don’t have any specific goals at all. I don’t have any numbers in front of my eyes to achieve. I just want to give my best for the country and in the process I know I can achieve something for myself as well.”

Ashwin is in the running to become the fastest player to record, he needs 21 wickets in his next five Tests to eclipse current holder Australia fast bowler Dennis Lillee.

He has also improved immensely with the bat notching two centuries in the Caribbean in 2016 and playing a key role with the bat against England and Australia. Ashwin also hit 47 in India’s first innings effort of 600 all out.

The second Test of the series against Sri Lanka starts on August 3 and will be played in Colombo.

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