Irfan Pathan, India's 2007 World T20 Final Hero, Retires From Cricket

All-rounder Irfan Pathan announced his retirement from all forms of cricket, news agency PTI reported on Saturday. Pathan, who was part of the team that won the 2007 World T20, appeared for India in 29 Tests, 120 ODIs and 24 T20Is. He last played for India in a T20I against South Africa on October 2, 2012 in Colombo in the 2012 World T20. The left-arm seamer is one of three Indian bowlers to claim a hat-trick in the longest format of the game.

Pathan made his debut for India in the famous Test match against Australia in Adelaide that India won thanks to Rahul Dravid's heroics. He made his ODI debut a month later against the same opposition in Melbourne.

While he never had express pace, his natural ability to swing the ball into the right-handers got him instant success, also drawing comparisons with the great Kapil Dev. It seemed India had found the all-rounder they were looking for since Kapil left the scene.

In 2006, when India toured Pakistan, Irfan Pathan had probably his greatest moment on the cricket pitch. In the first over of the match in Karachi, he dismissed Salman Butt, Younis Khan and Mohammad Yusuf off the last three deliveries to become the second Indian bowler to get a Test hat-trick after Harbhajan Singh.

Pathan also played a key role in India's successful campaign in the first ever World T20 in 2007, with a player-of-the-match performance in the final against Pakistan, when he picked up three wickets for 16 runs from his four overs.

Irfan Pathan, who started his domestic career for Baroda in the 2000/01 season, last played a competitive game in February 2019 during the Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy for Jammu and Kashmir.

(With inputs from PTI)

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