Ravichandran Ashwin signs with Sydney Thunder in Big Bash League
What's the story
Indian cricket star Ravichandran Ashwin has signed with Sydney Thunder for the next two seasons of the Big Bash League (BBL). This is a major milestone as he becomes the first capped Indian male cricketer to participate in this tournament. The move comes after Ashwin's retirement from the Indian Premier League earlier this year, giving him a chance to explore international leagues.
Tournament clash
Ashwin's ILT20 commitment clashes with BBL schedule
Ashwin has already registered for next week's ILT20 auction, where he will be the player with the highest base price. His commitment to this tournament, which runs from December 2 to January 4, means he will miss the first three weeks of BBL. The home-and-away phase of BBL season runs until January 18 with finals scheduled between January 20 and 25.
Team dynamics
The deal was finalized by Trent Copeland, Thunder's general manager
As per ESPNcricinfo, despite the scheduling conflict, BBL and four of its clubs pursued Ashwin for a spot in their teams. Eventually, he signed with Sydney Thunder after talks with Cricket Australia CEO Todd Greenberg and league executives. The deal was finalized by Trent Copeland, Thunder's general manager. The team is coached by Trevor Bayliss and led by David Warner who took them to last year's final against Hurricanes.
Match anticipation
Potential Sydney derby showdown in the offing
Ashwin's signing with Thunder could set up an exciting Sydney derby against Sydney Sixers. The match could see Ashwin and Warner go up against Steven Smith and Babar Azam, both playing for Sixers. However, it remains to be seen how many matches Ashwin will be available for as he is likely to miss at least one due to his ILT20 commitment.
Team strategy
BBL rules regarding overseas players
BBL clubs can only field three overseas players in their playing XI. Each club had already signed three players via pre-signing rules and the June overseas draft. However, they can sign up to four replacement players, making a maximum of seven on their list but only three on the field at any given time. This rule makes Ashwin's signing with Thunder even more interesting from a list management perspective.
IPL
Ashwin retired from IPL
Ashwin announced his retirement from the Indian Premier League (IPL) on August 27. Ashwin, who already retired from international cricket, shared the news through social media. In a heartfelt note on X, the former Indian spinner wrote, "They say every ending will have a new start, my time as an IPL cricketer comes to a close today, but my time as an explorer of the game around various leagues begins today."
Numbers
Ashwin picked 187 IPL wickets
Ashwin made his IPL debut in 2009 with CSK. He later played for Rising Pune Supergiant, Punjab Kings, Delhi Capitals, and Rajasthan Royals, before returning to CSK. In a stellar career, Ashwin took 187 wickets from 221 matches at 30.22 (BBM: 4/34). He has the fourth-most wickets in IPL history, behind Yuzvendra Chahal (221), Bhuvneshwar Kumar (198), Sunil Narine (192), and Piyush Chawla (192). However, he had a dismal IPL 2025 season, picking 7 wickets for CSK.
Information
His overall T20 stats
Overall in T20s, Ashwin has managed 317 wickets at 26.94. He has four four-fers from 333 matches. 72 of his T20 wickets came for India from 65 outings. He averaged 23.22.
Twitter Post
Thundering!
CONFIRMED: The @ThunderBBL have landed one of the biggest signings in BBL history with @ashwinravi99 set to play in #BBL15 🇮🇳 ⚡ pic.twitter.com/lXaeK678SN
— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) September 25, 2025
Twitter Post
BBL!
An Indian legend to make BBL history.
— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) September 25, 2025
See you in #BBL15, 🇮🇳 @ashwinravi99! pic.twitter.com/SCXk5vNxkI