Ravichandran Ashwin believes Gautam Gambhir is the "most misunderstood cricketer in India

Gautam Gambhir, the former batter for the Indian cricket team, is no stranger to controversy; he frequently makes headlines either to his accomplishments or his direct remarks. The left-handed hitter has two Indian Premier League (IPL) championships with the Kolkata Knight Riders as captain. He also had a significant part in leading India to the World Cup triumphs in 2007 and 2011.According to Ravichandran Ashwin, Gambhir is one of the most selfless cricket players he has ever seen, despite occasionally being misunderstood by experts and fans. He was later referred to be the "most misunderstood cricketer in India" by Ashwin.

"The most misunderstood cricket player in India is Gautam Gambhir. When it comes to taking a battle, the best team player is also the best individual. Despite his lack of expressiveness, he is right in your face. Gautam was an unsung hero in the World Cup final, which was not the only knock that occurred. There were other knocks that led up to the final. He genuinely refrained from letting the strain affect us. Altruistic. If he could have been selfless and 120–130 not out, that is what I would have said. He desired to turn off the game. I've always held the man in the highest regard. On YouTube, Ashwin stated, "People give him much less credit than he deserves."

In India's opening match of the Cricket World Cup 2023 against Australia, Ashwin could be selected as the third spinner behind Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav. He could be selected ahead of pacer Shardul Thakur because of the potentially exciting pitch at the MA Chidambaram Stadium and his experience against veterans David Warner and Steve Smith.

Warner has been dismissed 11 times in Test cricket by Ashwin, who uses his off-breaks to take the ball away from left-handers.

In the most recent second ODI between Australia and India in Indore, the Australian countered Ashwin by batting right-handed. Even Smith, a reliable run scorer in one-day internationals, struggled against the Indian master, particularly in Test matches. Therefore, it wouldn't come as a huge surprise if Ashwin was selected before Thakur in the opening game in Chepauk.

In the Indian World Cup squad, Ashwin took Axar Patel's place due to injury. During a lengthy session in the nets in Chennai, Ashwin bowled to players such as Shreyas Iyer, Ishan Kishan, and Thakur.