Ashwin does a Bradman, takes the field right after marriage

Kolkata: He is just one Test old but R Ashwin has already joined an illustrious group of cricketers, including Sir Donald Bradman, who tied the knot during or before an international series. The 25-year-old off-spinner married his childhood friend Preethi Narayanan yesterday morning and in the evening, the newly-wedded couple joined the Indian squad ahead of the second Test against West Indies that began today. [caption id=“attachment_130494” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“The 25-year-old off-spinner married his childhood friend Preethi Narayanan yesterday morning and in the evening, the newly-wedded couple joined the Indian squad ahead of the second Test against West Indies that began today. R Senthil Kumar/PTI”]  [/caption] Ashwin spoke to PTI soon after joining his teammates in the evening and said he was “comfortable” playing the Test the next day after his wedding. “That’s no problem at all,” was what Ashwin had to say when asked about the second Test. This is not the first instance of a busy cricketer playing just after tying the knot. Only recently, Indian opener Gautam Gambhir got married at a Gurgaon farmhouse a week before the start of the opening Test at Ferozshah Kotla in New Delhi. Much before this, Bradman did something similar in 1932. Sir Don and Jessie Bradman were married in St Paul’s Church in Sydney on 30 April 1932. Their honeymoon was unusual with his wife accompanying her husband on a Goodwill Tour to the United States and Canada organised by Arthur Mailey of Australia. In 1969, three days before the Eden Test against Australia, legendary spinner Bishan Singh Bedi married Australian-born Glenith whom he had met on India’s earlier tour Down Under in 1967-68. The left-arm spinner scalped a career-best 7-98 at the very same venue where Ashwin would be bowling. Incidentally, Ashwin earned the man of the match award in his debut Test with nine wickets, including six in the second innings, that helped India bounce back and win by five wickets. Rahul Dravid married Vijeta Pendharkar, a doctor from Nagpur in 2003, immediately after the World Cup in which India made the final under Sourav Ganguly. In one more instance, South African pacer Andre Nel got married to Deanne during a home Test match against the West Indies in 2003-04 and according to reports, the South African team had to take its team bus to the chapel to attend the ceremony. PTI