R Ashwin compared CSK’s ban with Man United’s tragic 1958 air crash and then said he was misquoted

The Chennai Super Kings were one of the two Indian Premier League franchises that were suspended from the tournament for two years in 2015 because of their involvement in the 2013 spot-fixing and betting scandal.

In 1958, an airplane carrying the Manchester United squad, staff, supporters and journalists crashed on its third attempt to take off from a Munich airport. Twenty three people out of the 44 on board the airplane died in the tragedy.

There is no connection whatsoever between the two abovementioned incidents, and they aren’t comparable in any way possible. However, India cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin seems to think they are.

At a press conference ahead of the start of the second edition of the Tamil Nadu Premier League, Ashwin was quoted as saying by the Times of India, “I think the two-year hiatus for CSK probably increases its value much like what it did for Manchester United when the air crash happened. I don’t know if it’s in the same league, but surely people in Chennai and fans across the world are waiting for CSK to return. I hope it turns out to be a good comeback.”

So, according to Ashwin, CSK and its fans were subjected to the same amount of grief because of a suspension that resulted from being involved in a corruption scandal as Manchester United were because of a fatal air crash.

Ashwin has been involved with CSK right from its inception in 2008 until their suspension in 2015. He obviously connects with the franchise and its fans, and it’s almost a given that he will be back in CSK’s yellow for season 11 next year.

But, surely, a more apt comparison such as Juventus after the Calciopoli scandal in 2006 could have been made.

The off-spinner took to Twitter to state that he was misquoted, after people started calling him out for his comments.

While what Ashwin says might very well be true, it will be interesting if the Times of India can take a page out of The Guardian’s book and put out the audio of the interview or at least stand by their journalist, if he is indeed right.