Former cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin has supported Rajasthan Royals (RR) captain Riyan Parag amid the ongoing controversies surrounding him. Parag is one of those Indian Premier League cricketers who is considered a brilliant talent but often makes headlines for the wrong reasons.
While Parag’s on-field behavior and off-field activities are causing headaches for the RR skipper, Ravichandran Ashwin has joined the debate in support of his former teammate. Ashwin, who is mostly remembered for his stint with Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League, also played three seasons for Rajasthan Royals.
R Ashwin comes forward to support Riyan Parag
Since Ashwin played for the Royals, he knew Parag very well. In support of the 24-year-old captain and batsman, R Ashwin mentioned that Riyan Parag is a special player, but people often misunderstand him.
At a recent event, during the live IPL 2026 match, Parag was seen smoking in the dressing room. He was accused of consuming e-cigarettes, which is a banned product in India. A camera on the field captured the exact moment the RR leader was smoking inside the dressing room.
Rajasthan Royals captain was caught red-handed smoking inside the dressing room during a live match
Several clips and pictures of the video quickly went viral on social media platforms, drawing criticism from cricket fans. Despite the mounting pressure, Parag played a brilliant innings against Delhi Capitals in Jaipur on Friday night.
As one of the middle order batsmen of the team. Riyan Parag played an inning of 90 runs in 50 balls with the help of eight fours and five sixes. With an impressive innings from the captain, the home team, Rajasthan Royals scored 225 runs in the first innings, which was eventually achieved by the visiting team, Delhi Capitals.
He is a lovely boy: Ashwin
Through a social media post, R Ahswin tried to divert attention from the ongoing controversies and focus on Parag’s batting credentials.
Ashwin wrote on his ‘X’ post, “Whether you agree or not, Riyan Parag is a special player. He is doing all the talking with his bat today.”
In the comments section of the post, a cricket fan wrote that the young batsman has everything a batsman should have, but Parag has issues like rude behavior and overconfidence.
Agree or not, Riyan Parag is a special player.
He is letting his bat do all the talking today. pic.twitter.com/KbcHI82pkI
– Ashwin (@ashwinravi99) 1 May 2026
The comment read, “Apart from his rough behavior and overconfidence, he seems to have all the bases covered as a player. Good technique, good captaincy, attacking mentality. He just needs to find consistency and be more polite and humble.”
Ashwin replied immediately. The former cricketer mentioned that since he shared dressing with Riyan Parag, he knows him very well as a person. Ashwin feels that people from outside often misjudge the talent of Rajasthan Royals.
Ashwin replied, “I’ve shared the dressing room with him and I think he’s a lovely, misunderstood kid.”
However, despite losing the match against Delhi Capitals, RR are still placed fourth on the points table, and have a strong chance of making the play-offs.
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