Royal Challengers Bangalore Off-Spinner Muttiah Muralitharan Set to Retire From IPL
Muttiah Muralitharan played 133 Tests, 350 ODIs and 12 T20Is for Sri Lanka from 1992 to 2011. He represented Chennai Super Kings in the first edition of the Indian Premier League and has been with the Royal Challengers Bangalore since 2012.
The legendary Muttiah Muralitharan is set to retire from the Indian Premier League at the end of the current season.
The former Sri Lankan spinner, who still manages to charm the cricket-loving crowd with his guile and spin, has decided to hang his boots with the Royal Challengers Bangalore.
"Probably, this is my last IPL season. I decided to play these T20 leagues (IPL, Big Bash and the Caribbean T20 league) because I had nothing to do after I retired.
I was getting bored," said Muralitharan, who turned 42 on April 17.
The highest wicket-taker in Test cricket, Muralitharan claimed his 800th Test wicket on the last ball of his final Test versus India at Galle in July 2010.
Incidentally, Pragyan Ojha, who was his victim back then, figures in today's clash with the Mumbai Indians.
Muralitharan's timing couldn't have been better as he chose to declare his intention to quit the IPL at the Wankhede Stadium - the same venue where he bowed out of international cricket after Sri Lanka lost to India in the 2011 World Cup final.
"Oh... that was a long time back. I was more than happy that we beat India in the recent World T20 final," he said.