The ball pitched on the middle-stump and turned to the off. Darren Sammy was all over the place, as he swung his bat wildly. The ball rocketed in the stratosphere before landing in Rohit Sharma’s hands. R Ashwin, the bowler, celebrated in his trademark style – a smile on his face and a few high-fives from his mates.

It was the 100th such celebration for the Indian off-spinner in Test cricket. And he had strolled to the landmark in only his 18th Test. The only spinner who got there in lesser matches was former Australian leg-spinner, Clarrie Grimmett (17 Tests). Ashwin beat Erapalli Prasanna (20) and Anil Kumble (21) to become the quickest Indian to 100 Test wickets.

This came just days after his match-winning century in Kolkata – Ashwin’s second in Test cricket – that got the team out of the jail and resulted in his rise to the top of ICC’s Test Rankings for all-rounders. Ashwin has come a long way in very short time. But he hopes this is just the beginning of a more prolonged and endearing journey in his cricketing career.

Ashwin spoke to bcci.tv after finishing with figures of 15-2-45-3 on Day-one of the Mumbai Test against West Indies.

Quickest Indian to 100 Test wickets. What does this achievement mean to you?

I would like to think of it as just a milestone, a stepping stone to the next level. I am taking it as just a number but it is definitely a good accomplishment and I am pleased about it.

Are you someone you remembers all your dismissals?

Initially it is easy. You remember your first 100 or 150 wickets. But I’ll have to ask Anil (Kumble) bhai and other guys who have taken heaps of wickets to see if one can remember all their wickets of a long career. I once asked (Muttiah) Muralitharan if he remembers all his wickets and he actually remembers his first, 50th and so on. I think I too would remember my scalps if hopefully I get anywhere close to what they achieved.

Do you have a favourite wicket?

There is no one particular wicket at the top of my head. But it could be a breakthrough or even a spell I bowled at a crunch time to put a lot of pressure on the opposition and picked a couple of wickets. I would not name any one wicket because the context in which it was taken is important as well. There would be many such instances but at the top of my head I cannot recall any.

Do you have a sign as a bowler which tells you that you’re going to have a good day?

With me it’s a lot about how I start my spell – how often I am landing the ball where I want to, if I am bowling at a left-hander, whether I am creating the proper angle. As long as I am in real control of my line and length in the first four-five overs, I mostly end up with a wicket or two in my first spell. And an early wicket always gets me going.

What is the secret behind that pause that you take sometimes in your delivery stride?

The pause is something I tried to develop especially for the shorter formats of the game to see what the batsman is trying to do and how he is planning to play the next ball. It is not necessarily a part of my armoury that I will use all the time; I might not use it for a long time until I feel the time is right to bring it out again. At this point of time I have something very interesting in terms of the alignment of the crease, where I am landing the ball and the consistency of line. I am really enjoying it.

You’re someone who is always on the move, trying to innovate and invent new deliveries. Pragyan Ojha, on the other hand seems more stable and content. Do the two of you balance and complement each other in that regards?

I think bowling partnership is all about realizing what your partner is trying to do and complementing that. It doesn’t have to be between two spinners or two pacers; a spin bowler and paceman can have a successful partnership too. We, as a bowling unit on the whole, should realize quickly who is looking most likely to do the job for the team and the rest should support him. It was one such day in the field today when Ojha got a five-for. I felt I bowled really well and deserved five wickets too. But the collective goal is to see that the team stands in a good position at the end of the day.

Spinners are considered to be these guileful operators who are supposed to trick the batsmen into dismissals. Do you spend a lot of time in setting a batsman up and play those little mind games?

To a great degree your planning and performance depends on a lot of variables of the game like the track, the ball going to a particular fielder and him taking the catch. A bowler can just put the ball there and rest of the action is done by the track, batsman and the fielders. On a wicket that is not helping me much and if I am in good rhythm, I like to play the batsman rather than the surface and that’s where the mental games play a role. The batsman is also entitled to know his cricket and he may go one-up on me. But that’s the beauty of the battle.

No. 1 on the Test all-rounders’ rankings – did you see that one coming?

As an individual I have set certain goals for myself, not in terms of being No.1 here or there but how I want to develop my career. I had a good break at home in the last six months during which I thought over where I want to be in my career in the foreseeable future, spoke to people about it and worked to get there. I am happy to say that I am pretty close to where I wanted to be at this point in my Test career. The next goal is to contribute with the bat in the shorter formats and I am working towards it. The process is on and I hope the results continue to show.

Will emulating this performance overseas be one of your next ambitions?

I have watched a lot of cricket during my formative years as a kid and I know one thing – performing well overseas brings you a lot of respect. That respect is earned through experience; the conditions and surfaces vary vastly and to a greater degree I know that odds will be stacked against me. That challenge gives me a kick to push myself further and achieve more. It will be a lovely challenge to play overseas but I am not under any undue pressure for it.