Saurabh Tiwary announces retirement from professional cricket
Veteran batter Saurabh Tiwary has announced his retirement from all forms of professional cricket. The 34-year-old will play his farewell game in Jharkhand's season finale against Rajasthan in the ongoing 2023-24 Ranji Trophy.
With a lone win and only 10 points in six games, the side is not in the reckoning for qualification for the knockouts. Tiwary has been in decent form this season, scoring 158 runs in four matches at an average of 39.50 with a century.
The southpaw debuted for Jharkhand at only 18 in 2006 and has gone on to play 115 first-class, 116 List-A, and 181 T20 games in his domestic career.
At the press conference today, Tiwary announced his walking away from the sport by saying:
"It's a little tough to bid farewell to this journey that I had started before my schooling. "But I'm also sure that this is the right time for this. I feel that if you're not in the national team and IPL, it's better to vacate a spot in the state side for a youngster. Youngsters are getting a lot of chances in our Test team so I'm making this decision."
He added:
"It's not like I've decided this only on the basis of my performances. You can see my record in Ranji and in the last domestic season. It's always asked what I'm going to do next and for now I only know that cricket is the only thing I know so I'm going to be connected to the game. I got an offer from politics too but I haven't thought about that."
In an incredible first-class career, Tiwary has amassed over 8,000 runs at an average of 47.51 with 22 centuries. His List-A numbers are no less impressive, with over 4,000 runs at an average of 46.55 and a strike rate of 83.41.
The batter was a vital cog in the Indian side that won the 2008 Under-19 World Cup in Malaysia.
A look at Saurabh Tiwary's numbers in the IPL and International cricket
Saurabh Tiwary also enjoyed his moments in the sunshine in the IPL and played a few ODIs for Team India during his cricketing career.
The 34-year-old was part of the Mumbai Indians (MI) setup from the inaugural edition of the IPL in 2008 till 2010. After limited appearances in the first two seasons, Tiwary broke through in 2010, scoring 419 runs at a strike rate of 135.59 in the franchise's run to the final.
The Bihar-born batter moved to play for the Royal Challengers Bangalore from 2011 to 2013 and the Delhi Capitals in 2014 and 2015. It was followed by a lone season with the Rising Pune Supergiants in 2016 before returning to MI for two separate stints in 2017 to 2018 and 2020 to 2021.
However, Tiwary was inconsistent after the 2010 season before a final bang in 2021, averaging 57.50 in five outings.
Overall, the southpaw played in 93 IPL games and scored 1,494 runs at an average of 28.73 and a strike rate of 120.10.
Tiwary debuted for India in 2010 and played three ODIs, all in the same year, scoring 49 runs without ever being dismissed.