Indian speedster Zaheer Khan on Thursday issued a statement announcing retirement from international cricket.
Khan, who is India’s fourth highest wicket taker, issued the statement through his official Twitter account. “I bid adieu to my career in international cricket. I look forward to signing off with IPL 9.”
Zaheer played a key role in India’s World Cup win in 2011.
Zaheer Khan made his ODI debut on October 3, 2000 vs Kenya at Nairobi. It was a memorable debut for him as he picked three wickets for 48 runs in 10 overs.
Zaheer played 200 ODIs for India and picked 282 wickets.
He made his Test debut against Bangladesh against Bangladesh at Dhaka in 2000.
In whites, Zaheer played 92 matches and picked 311 wickets.
Zaheer, who made his Test debut against Bangladesh in 2000, picked up 311 wickets in 92 matches at 32.94 in the longest format of the game. The 37-year-old left-arm pacer was capped 200 times in ODIs and 17 times T20Is, pocketing 282 and 17 wickets, respectively. He is the fourth-highest wicket-taker in longer version among Indians after Anil Kumble (619), Kapil Dev (434) and Harbhajan Singh (417).
Zaheer last played a Test for India in February 2014 against New Zealand in Wellington. Since then, he has been plagued by fitness issues and he missed the 2014/15 Ranji Trophy for Mumbai due to a shoulder injury.
He was picked by the Delhi Daredevils in the 2015 IPL and he bagged seven wickets in seven games. Zaheer will continue to play domestic cricket till the end of IPL 2016. Zaheer Khan has business interests in the food and hotel industry.
The international career of Zaheer Khan and Yuvraj Singh flowered under the captaincy of Sourav Ganguly. But in recent times, both players have been overtaken by younger and fitter players. The national selectors found little value in Zaheer keeping India’s future in mind.
BCCI Pays Tribute
President of the BCCI, Shashank Manohar complimented Zaheer on his wonderful career and said: “The BCCI appreciates Zaheer Khan’s outstanding service to Indian Cricket. He served Indian cricket with remarkable passion and commitment. Being a fast bowler in the Indian sub-continent is challenging but he led the bowling attack with distinction and contributed significantly to the success of Indian cricket. I wish him all the best for the future.”
