Indian veteran leg-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has bid adieu to the Indian Premier League (IPL) as well after recently retiring from international cricket. Ashwin began his IPL career with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and concluded his career with them as well. Having retired from international cricket during the Test series against Australia, his abrupt pull-out from the IPL came as a shock to the fans. But now Ashwin has talked frankly about it on his YouTube channel.

Ashwin feels that now he does not possess so much 'bandwidth' left with him to throw himself in every match with the same passion and effort. On his YouTube channel, Ashwin said that he no longer has the strength to play a long tournament like the IPL. He said, "I was wondering if I would be able to play the IPL next year. But a three-month tournament is now very tiring for me. Traveling every week, playing matches and then recovering, all this is not easy for me now." Ashwin further said, "This is why I am always surprised to see Mahendra Singh Dhoni. It is a big thing how he plays a long tournament like the IPL even at this age. With increasing age, the strength to play the IPL decreases."

He announced on Wednesday morning that he would start "exploring the possibilities of playing in other leagues around the world". He is saying goodbye to this tournament as the fifth highest wicket-taker of the IPL (187 wickets). During this time his economy was 7.2.

Apart from Chennai Super Kings, Ashwin also participated in the IPL for Rising Pune Supergiant, Delhi Capitals and Rajasthan Royals and also captained Kings XI Punjab.

Ashwin wrote in his post on X, "It's a special day and so is a special beginning. It is said that every end has a new beginning. My time as an IPL cricketer ends today, but exploring the possibilities of playing in different leagues begins today. I would like to thank all the franchises I played with for the memories and relationships and most importantly, the IPL and BCCI, who have given me so much so far. Whatever the future holds, I am looking forward to enjoying it and making the most of it."

Ashwin won the IPL with CSK in 2010 and 2011, but after playing for different teams for eight years, his homecoming in the IPL last season was not as expected. Ashwin was bought by CSK for Rs 9.75 crore in the mega auction last year, and he played nine out of 14 matches. It also proved to be his most expensive year from an economy point of view. He conceded 9.12 runs per over. This was the first time that his economy rate in a season was more than 8.49.