Wicket-keeper batsman Parthiv Patel on Wednesday announced his retirement from all formats of cricket. After the retirement decision, he said that his first Test captain Saurabh Ganguly, along with legendary Indian spinner Anil Kumble, had a great influence on him in cricket as well as life.
Parthiv said goodbye to his 18-year cricket career and said that this is the right time for Gujarat to move forward after becoming a three-time Indian Premier League champion (IPL) in addition to almost all domestic cricket titles. He also said that Kumble and Ganguly were ‘truly leaders’.
He wrote an emotional post on his Twitter handle, expressing his gratitude to the people involved during his cricketing career.
‘Today I stop and see how much I have traveled so far. My greatest achievement is that my father always stood by me. He was always with me. Today I announce my retirement from all formats of international cricket. On this occasion, I am expressing my gratitude to many people.
Parthiv wrote, ‘At the age of 17, the BCCI believed in me. Thank you for giving me a chance at a very young age. I express my gratitude to all the captains under whose leadership I played. Especially Dada, under whose captaincy I played the first match. I am thankful to all the players who have played with me. Whom I can call my friend today. Also thank the players of the opposition team.
Parthiv Patel, who made his Test debut at the age of 17 years 152 days under the captaincy of Sourav Ganguly, scored 934 runs at an average of 31.13 in his career, including 6 fifties. He also took 62 catches and made 10 stumps. He was the youngest wicket-keeper to make a Test debut.
