Can R Ashwin play in overseas T20 leagues after retiring from IPL? Everything you need to know

Ravichandran Ashwin announced his retirement from the Indian Premier League on Wednesday, ending his 16-year association with the tournament. The 38-year-old off-spinner's decision comes months after his international cricket retirement in December.Ashwin shared his retirement news through social media platform X, expressing his thoughts about the future."They say every ending will have a new start, my time as an IPL cricketer comes to a close today, but my time as an explorer of the game around various leagues begins today," Ashwin posted."Would like to thank all the franchisees for all the wonderful memories and relationships over the years and most importantly the IPL and the BCCI for what they have given me until now. Look forward to enjoying and making the most of what's ahead of me," he added.Ashwin made his IPL debut with Chennai Super Kings in 2009 and concluded his journey with the same team in IPL 2025, after rejoining them for Rs 9.75 crore following a ten-year gap.During his IPL career spanning 221 matches, Ashwin claimed 187 wickets at an average of 30.22, with his best bowling figures being 4/34. He also contributed with the bat, scoring 833 runs with a highest score of 50 and an average of 13.02.Throughout his IPL journey, Ashwin played for multiple teams including Chennai Super Kings, Rising Pune Supergiant, Punjab Kings, Delhi Capitals, and Rajasthan Royals. He was particularly successful with CSK, being a crucial part of their championship-winning teams in 2010 and 2011.Can R Ashwin play for foreign T20 leagues?Ashwin said in his social media that his "time as an explorer of the game around various leagues begins today" suggesting he was open to playing in leagues around the world such as UAE's ILT20, South Africa's SA20, Australia Big Bash (BBL), England's The Hundred and USA's Major League Cricket (MLC) to name a few.This would not have been possible during the time Ashwin was part of CSK and/or involved in Indian cricket in any way - domestically or internationally.As per BCCI's rules, a men's player needs to fulfill the following rules to play overseas T20 leagues- Retired from international cricket- Retired from domestic cricket- Retired from the IPLSome of the former players to have taken the field in overseas T20 leagues are Munaf Patel, Yuvraj Singh, Robin Uthappa, Yusuf Pathan, Ambati Rayudu, Shikhar Dhawan and Dinesh Karthik.