Piyush Chawla Announces Retirement From Cricket: Indian leg-spinner Piyush Chawla has announced his retirement from all forms of cricket at the age of 36 with a heartfelt post on social media, bringing an end to his 20-year-long career at the top level.
Piyush Chawla Announces Retirement From Cricket
In an Instagram post earlier today, Piyush Chawla wrote a lengthy goodbye to his long cricketing career, thanking all the teams and franchises he played for. In the caption, he has this to say:
“Closing this chapter with Gratitude !! Retiring from all formats of the game, thank you everyone for your support throughout this beautiful journey.”
Chawla is a two-time World Cup winner with the Indian Cricket team and has played all levels of cricket all over the world. He first came into the public eye when he played in the 2004-05 U-19 World Cup at the age of 15, taking 13 wickets in that competition. He then made his first-class debut less than a year later for Central Zone in the Duleep Trophy.
After playing in the 2006 U-19 World Cup, in which he had a stellar performance in the final despite India losing to Pakistan, Chawla was picked for the senior team for England’s tour to India. He made his Test cricket debut at the age of 17 in March 2006 in Mohali and remains India’s youngest national team debutant after Sachin Tendulkar.
Due to continued performances in domestic cricket, Piyush was picked in the squad for the 2007 World T20, the first World Cup in the format. He was part of a young and fresh squad captained by first-time skipper MS Dhoni. And while he did not play a single game in that tournament, the 18-year-old Chawla became a world champion with the Indian Cricket Team.
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He had also made his ODI debut earlier in 2007. But it was not until 2008 that he would first play in the tournament that would make him a household name, that being the Indian Premier League.
A regular for Uttar Pradesh in the domestic circuit and sporadically playing for the national team, Chawla was picked by the Kings XI Punjab for $400,000. He played with the franchise for six seasons, from 2008 to 2013, even making it to the semi-finals in the inaugural campaign.
In 2011, he was a part of the Indian Cricket Team that won the 2011 ODI World Cup. And this time, he even played three matches. However, after this World Cup, he would never represent India in the ODIs again.
Piyush would play 87 games and take 84 wickets for the franchise, becoming their highest wicket-taker. This record of his taking the most wickets for KXIP/PBKS would not be broken till 2024, when Arshdeep Singh would finally surpass him for the number of wickets for this franchise.
In 2014, Chawla was signed by the Kolkata Knight Riders. And while he had a decent season with the ball, taking 14 wickets in 11 matches, he would forever etch his name in the annals of history when, in the final against his former side KXIP, Kolkata was in trouble at 189/7 while chasing 200, with 11 runs required in seven balls.
On the last ball of the 19th over, Chawla would hit a cracking six. With five required in the final over, Sunil Narine would take a run on the second delivery, and Piyush would hit a four on the third to win the match. His run towards his teammates with a bat and helmet in his hands is one of the most iconic images in IPL history.
Piyush Chawla would have up-and-down seasons in the Indian Premier League, having his best season in the league in 2023 with 22 wickets in 16 matches, long after the prime of his career. In this competition, the UP native would be the fourth-highest wicket taker, behind legends like Sunil Narine, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Yuzvendra Chahal. Chawla has 192 wickets to his name in as many matches in the IPL, as he stands ahead of the likes of Ravichandran Ashwin, Dwayne Bravo, and Lasith Malinga in wickets in this competition.
Today, Piyush Chawla’s long and fruitful career comes to an end. While he only played three Tests, seven T20Is, and seven ODIs for the national team, he had a prolific career in domestic cricket. Not to forget, he is an absolute legend of the IPL. He can now be regularly heard on commentary for Star Sports, something he has been doing for a few years now.
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