India's ace off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin did not have much time to celebrate his colossal 500 Test wickets feat as he had to rush back home for a family medical emergency. After leaving Rajkot Test midway, Ashwin met his mother in a Chennai hospital’s Intensive Care United (ICU). She was slipping in and out of consciousness and had only one question for his son -- "Why did you come?"
"When I landed and got to the hospital, my mom was slipping in and out of consciousness, and the first thing she asked me was, 'Why did you come?' The next time she was conscious, she said, "I think you should go back because the Test match is happening," Ashwin told 'ESPNCricinfo' ahead of the fifth and final Test of the series in Dharamsala.
Ahead of his 100th Test, Ashwin recalled how his parents Ravichandran and Chitra did not leave any stone unturned to support his dream of representing India
"The entire family is built on cricket and to facilitate my career. It hasn't been easy. It has been very hard on them. It's been a big roller-coaster for them - going through the emotions and ups and downs that I myself do," the 37-year-old said.
Sport means more to family than him
The Tamil Nadu spinner went on to say that at times he felt that the game meant more to his family than him.
"I am in the second half of my thirties and my dad still watches a game like he would watch my first international game. It means a lot to them. Compared to what it means to them, it definitely means less to me.
"They have eliminated anything that comes in the way of my cricket. That has been the sole purpose of their lives ever since I can remember," he said.
Ashwin lives father's dream
Ashwin revealed that it was his father’s dream to become a cricketer but he couldn’t so he lived the dream through his son and the whole family supported it.
"It was as if I was living the dream my dad wanted to achieve. Imagine somebody wanted to become a cricketer (but doesn't). He gets married, he has a son.
"And he wants to live the dream through his son, and he does everything from teaching me, to taking notes from my classmates, to taking me to private tuitions to make sure I play the maximum possible amount of cricket while still finishing my education.
"And this lady (mother) coming from some other hamlet says, 'I support you because you couldn't become a cricketer. Let's support our son to become a cricketer. Let's work our backsides off'. And the father-in-law supports it, and then the sister-in-law supports it."
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