Former U-19 World Cup-winning captain Unmukt Chand on Friday (August 13) stunned everyone with his decision to retire from cricket in India.

The 28-year-old took to Twitter to share a long note, in which he confirmed that he is retiring from Indian cricket but is open to ply his trade around the world. He is in USA since April and is expected to feature in the planned US T20 League.

Unmukt's brilliance in domestic cricket and for India A saw him getting picked in the preliminary squads of 2013 Champions Trophy and 2014 T20 World Cup, but he couldn’t earn a national call-up.

Speaking to Cricbuzz, Chand reflected on his decision and said: "It's a tough one for someone like me, who has always dreamed of playing for the country. And most of it very emotional one as well and obviously, having played every other cricket, except for the senior team, I think it was a very painful call. But then the last few years have not been very kind to me in terms of facing a lot of association politics among other things. I've not been able to play a lot of cricket because of such things and that is why I arrived at this decision, to play some good cricket here in the US. I'd finally like to thank the BCCI for their support over the years in making me the cricketer I am today."

Unmukt Chand had started his domestic career with Delhi in 2010. He also led his state team before being dropped from the Vijay Hazare Trophy squad in 2017 and becoming an irregular member of the side thereafter.

The Delhi lad switched his base to Uttarakhand in 2019 but the move didn't work out. He returned back to Delhi for the 2020-21 season but wasn’t included in the playing XI in any of the fixtures.

"Things like that hurt you as a player. When certain players who lack a certain pedigree play ahead of you then it feels like a slap on your face. I've never gotten the support I've yearned from DDCA all these years. I've been ousted from the team multiple times for no fault of mine," Chand said.

Unmukt had begun his IPL career with Delhi Capitals (formerly known as Delhi Daredevils) back in 2011. He also turned up for Rajasthan Royals, Mumbai Indians and his last appearance in the T20 league was in 2016.

Known to speak his mind, Chand has now moved on from the disappointments and is focusing on the job at hand.

"I am only 28. I have 10 solid years of cricket left in me. I wasn't getting a lot of game time in India in the past couple of years. The means may have changed but the goal is still the same to be the batsman I can be and play international cricket," he remarked.

"I do have a feeling that world cricket is also transforming into a league-dominated structure. This move opens many more options for me. If you're not playing the IPL and if you don't get to play Ranji Trophy you're left with nothing if you are an Indian cricketer. I think I have opted out at the right time to open many avenues for me," Chand concluded.

(Inputs from Cricbuzz)