Shikhar Dhawan has called time on his 14-year international career by announcing his retirement through a social media post on Saturday morning. Dhawan last featured in a competitive game this April, while leading Punjab Kings in IPL 2024. He retires with 24 international hundreds (17 in ODIs and seven in Tests) across 269 matches.
“It’s important to turn the page to move forward in life and that’s why I am announcing my retirement from international and domestic cricket,” he said in a video posted on his social media accounts. “I am leaving with peace in my heart that I played so long for India. I’ve told myself don’t feel sad that you won’t play for India anymore, but feel happy that you played for the country.”
Dhawan retires as a modern ODI great, being one of only eight batters in the format’s history with over 5000 runs at a 40-plus average and a 90-plus strike rate (Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are the other Indians in the list). He hasn’t played for India since the ODI series against Bangladesh in December 2022.
While he played across formats in his prime, Dhawan’s overall ODI numbers towered over his records in the other two formats, even though it was in Tests when he first burst onto the scene with a 85-ball hundred against Australia in Mohali, the fastest ever by a Test debutant. He went on to make 187 in a match-winning effort.
Dhawan’s career hit the high notes in 2013, when made 1162 runs in ODIs at an average of 50.52 and a strike rate of 97.89. The icing on the cake was his chart-topping 363 runs in five innings, including two centuries, in India’s title-winning run at the Champions Trophy, which was his first series back in ODI colors after five forgettable outings in 2010-11.
That tournament was the start of a glorious partnership at the top of the order with Rohit. In terms of run aggregates, the pair is the fourth-best in ODIs, and second-most successful for India after Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly.
More to follow…
Source: ESPN Crickinfo
