5 sportsmen who did not know the meaning of the word 'retirement'

Over the years, every sport has been witness to athletes who have completely dominated their respective discipline and left a lasting imprint to be regarded as legends.But time and again the limelight, popularity and the sheer thrill to perform has lured these legends to return to the arena once more to revisit their glory days. There have also been instances wherein they have struggled to decide when to quit and retired and unretired numerous times during their careers.With this in view, here is a look at 5 athletes who returned more than once to their respective sports:  

#5 Shahid Afridi (Cricket)

The successful Pakistani cricketer has had a lengthy international career, with his debut stretching back to 1996, when he played his first ODI against Kenya in the Sameer Cup. He has endured since, but seen an inconsistent career marked by numerous records, milestones and controversies.

During his long stint in cricket, there have been several instances when he has come out of retirement even after formally announcing it.

The earliest such incident happened in 2006, when he retired from tests to focus on his ODI form.

But only two weeks into the announcement, he retracted from his decision on the insistence of his coach Bob Woolmer. Then, later on in 2010, when given the responsibility of leading his side against Australia, he again retired from the format after playing just one match in the series - citing temperamental reasons.

In the ODI format too, he made a controversial decision to retire in 2011, when he was sacked as captain of the national team after losing the world cup. But merely 4 months later he made comeback to the side, and it was finally after the 2015 World Cup that he bid adieu to ODI.

Now active only in T20 Internationals, Afridi has already announced last year that he will retire after this years’ World Cup, but his recent interviews tell a different story. Currently media is abuzz with reports that he is considering continuing playing as he is under pressure to do it from his relatives and close friends.

How fortunes will turn out for him will probably be made clear in the coming few weeks.

Over the years, Afridi has proved to be inconsistent in his career, with his form suffering numerous ups and downs and his several retirements only further go on to justify his inconsistency.