Indian cricket star Shikhar Dhawan has officially announced his retirement from international cricket, ending his 14-year career in a heartfelt social media post on Saturday morning. Dhawan, who last played competitively in April while leading Punjab Kings in the IPL, retires with an impressive record of 24 international centuries—17 in ODIs and seven in Tests—across 269 matches.
In an emotional video shared on his social media accounts, Dhawan said, “It’s important to turn the page to move forward in life, and that’s why I am announcing my retirement from international and domestic cricket. I leave with peace in my heart, knowing I played for India for so long. I’ve told myself not to feel sad that I won’t play for India anymore, but to feel happy that I had the opportunity to represent my country.”
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Dhawan leaves the game as one of the modern greats in ODI cricket, becoming one of only eight batters in the format’s history to score over 5,000 runs with an average above 40 and a strike rate over 90—joining fellow Indian legends Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli on this elite list. His last appearance for India was during the ODI series against Bangladesh in December 2022.
While Dhawan excelled across all formats during his career, his ODI accomplishments are particularly noteworthy. He made an explosive entry into Test cricket with a blistering 85-ball century against Australia in Mohali, the fastest by a Test debutant, eventually scoring 187 in that match-winning performance.
Dhawan’s career peaked in 2013 when he amassed 1,162 runs in ODIs at an average of 50.52 and a strike rate of 97.89. His standout performance came in the Champions Trophy, where he topped the run charts with 363 runs in five innings, including two centuries, leading India to the title in his first ODI series after a disappointing 2010-11 run.
This tournament also marked the beginning of his successful opening partnership with Rohit Sharma. Their partnership ranks fourth in ODI run aggregates and is the second most successful for India, after the legendary duo of Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly.
Dhawan maintained his form beyond the 2013 Champions Trophy, becoming a key player in India’s ODI team over the years. He was the top run-scorer for India in major ODI tournaments such as the Asia Cup 2014, World Cup 2015, Champions Trophy 2017, and Asia Cup 2018.
In 2019, Dhawan’s ODI career hit a setback when a thumb injury forced him out of the World Cup in England, shortly after he scored a century against Australia at The Oval. Despite this, Dhawan was entrusted with short captaincy stints in the latter part of his career, leading India’s second-string teams in the absence of regulars.
In the IPL, Dhawan played for teams like Delhi Capitals, Mumbai Indians, Deccan Chargers, Sunrisers Hyderabad, and Punjab Kings, finishing as the second-highest run-scorer in the league’s history, with 6,769 runs in 221 innings at a strike rate of 127.14, second only to Virat Kohli. As a domestic cricketer, Dhawan was an integral part of Delhi’s Ranji Trophy-winning team in 2007-08 and was the leading run-scorer for India at the Under-19 World Cup in 2004.
