The Maharashtra batter’s announcement closely mirrored the iconic retirement note of former Indian captain MS Dhoni, underscoring the strong bond between the two cricketers.
Jadhav shared a poignant slideshow of photos from his career on Instagram, accompanied by a Kishore Kumar song playing in the background.
“Thank you all for your love and support throughout my career. From 1500 hrs, consider me as retired from all forms of cricket,” he wrote, confirming his retirement at 3 pm IST on Monday.
The wording of Jadhav’s announcement was nearly identical to Dhoni’s surprise retirement post on August 15, 2020.
Dhoni had announced his retirement with a two-line statement on Instagram, a year after his last international game for India during the 2019 World Cup in England.
“Thanks a lot for ur love and support throughout. From 1929 hrs consider me as retired,” Dhoni had said, sharing a career photo slideshow set to one of his favorite songs, ‘Main Pal Do Pal Ka Shair Hoon.’
Kedar Jadhav’s career with the Indian team spanned 73 ODIs and 9 T20Is between 2014 and 2020. He has scored 1389 ODI runs at a healthy average of 42.09 and a strike rate of 101.06, including two centuries and six half-centuries. He also has taken 27 wickets in ODIs with his part-time spin bowling.
In the shortest format, he has amassed 122 runs with the help of a fifty in six innings.
The 39-year-old thrived under Dhoni’s leadership, contributing valuable off-spin bowling in addition to his batting prowess. Jadhav was part of the squad that reached the semi-finals of the 2019 World Cup.
As Jadhav steps away from cricket, his retirement marks the end of an era for a player who provided critical support and versatility to the Indian team. Fans and fellow cricketers alike are sure to remember his contributions fondly.