Madhya Pradesh and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) bowler Ishwar Pandey announced his retirement from all cricket on Monday on social media. He is mostly known for his stint with CSK in the IPL where he picked 18 wickets in 25 matches.
Pandey played for Madhya Pradesh and Central Zone and in 75 first-class matches he picked up 263 wickets. He also played the IPL for Rising Pune Supergiants and Pune Warriors.
In an interview with Dainik Bhaskar, Ishwar said that things would have been different had MS Dhoni given him a chance. Dhoni was his captain when he was picked in the Indian squad for the tour of England and New Zealand in 2014-15, but failed to break into the playing XI.
"Had Dhoni given me a chance my career would have been something else. I was 23-24 years old at that time and my fitness was great. Had Dhoni given me a chance to play for India and if I had performed then my career would have been different," Pandey was quoted as saying by Dainik Bhaskar.
Pandey revealed his decision to retire via Instagram, sharing a note in which he recalled sharing a dressing room with the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni, and Virat Kohli.
Here are some excerpts from his retirement announcement:
“To share a dressing room with modern-day greats like Virat Kohli MS Dhoni Yuvraj Singh Suresh Raina Ishant Sharma Ravindra Jadeja Bhuvneshwar Kumar was very special and to have played a match against Legend Sachin Tendulkar Sir was like a dream come true. I started watching cricket because of him and I have always admired him since my childhood," the post read.
“Cricket for me is everything and I will always love to be connected to this game. To all my fans and well-wishers, I would like to thank you and I will want you all to keep supporting me with the love you have always given to me. Forever and grateful and blessed - Ishwar Pandey," he added.
