‘Everything feels very special when I look back now,’ Vijay Shankar says after announcing retirement
CHENNAI: Indian all-rounder Vijay Shankar has announced his retirement from all forms of Indian domestic cricket and the IPL, bringing the curtain down on a career that saw him represent India across formats and feature in the 2019 ODI World Cup. A dependable all-rounder for Tamil Nadu over the years, Shankar represented India in 12 ODIs and nine T20Is, scoring a combined 324 runs and taking nine wickets. In the 2019 ODI World Cup, he famously picked up a wicket with his very first ball in the tournament against Pakistan before a toe injury cut short his campaign.
Across domestic cricket, Shankar compiled impressive numbers of 4,253 runs and 43 wickets in 77 first-class matches, 2,790 runs and 73 wickets in List A cricket, and 2,583 runs with 38 wickets in T20s. In the IPL, he scored 1,233 runs in 78 matches while representing Chennai Super Kings, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Delhi Capitals and Gujarat Titans. He moved to Tripura ahead of the 2025-26 and scored an unbeaten 151 in his last Ranji Trophy match against Gujarat.
Speaking after announcing his decision, the 35-year-old admitted retirement was not an easy call to make. “I have been thinking about retirement for some time. It is not an easy thing to decide, and it took time for me to arrive at it.
Eventually, I felt this was the right time to take the call,” Shankar told TOI. Looking back at his journey, the all-rounder said every phase of his career remained memorable. “The journey was quite long, and I really enjoyed every small hurdle I crossed.
Injuries, setbacks, representing the country, changing from offspin to medium pace quite late in my career, everything feels very special when I look back now. " For Shankar, the highest point of his career was representing the country, getting the India cap and playing in the World Cup. Interestingly, he refused to term any phase of his career as the “lowest point”, saying setbacks only helped him grow stronger.