R Ashwin announced a shock retirement from international cricket after the third Test match against Australia and returned home the very next day. Ashwin was India's most experienced spinner in Australia but he was benched for the series opener in Perth. Captain Rohit Sharma revealed that Ashwin was convinced to play the 2nd Test in Adelaide.

The Indian legend was once again benched in Brisbane and he announced his retirement few minutes after the game ended. The veteran spinner is confirmed to play IPL 2025. Ashwin made his homecoming to Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the IPL 2025 mega-auction and he will represent the Yellow Army for the first time since 2015.

"I want to be idle-no immediate plans. Being idle is difficult for me. I am going to play for CSK, and don't be surprised if I try and aspire to play for as long as I can. I don't think Ashwin the cricketer is done. I think Ashwin the Indian cricketer has probably called it time. That's it," Ashwin said upon his return to India.

Now that Ashwin has retired from international cricket, can he play IPL 2025 as an uncapped player like MS Dhoni? The answer is no. Ashwin will remain a capped player in IPL till December 8, 2029.

Under the BCCI's rules, an Indian player will fall in the uncapped category five years after his last appearance for Team India. Even though Ashwin retired on December 18, he will be considered an uncapped player in IPL from December 8.

Interestingly, a player doesn't have to retire to become an uncapped player. The likes of Mohit Sharma, Sandeep Sharma and a few others entered the IPL 2025 mega-auction as uncapped players despite being active.

Ashwin will reunite with Ravindra Jadeja at CSK after 10 years. They formed a solid bowling partnership from 2012 to 2024 in Test cricket and will hope to emulate their success in IPL.

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