Mithali Raj announces retirement from T20 Internationals
There was a lot of speculation on whether Mithali Raj will be considered by the selectors for the upcoming home series against South Africa, with the focus on youngsters ahead of next year’s T20 World Cup in Australia.
Former India T20I captain Mithali Raj on Tuesday announced retirement from T20 internationals. The BCCI in a mail confirmed the news of the stalwart bidding cricket’s shortest format adieu at the international stage. Mithali, who continues to be India’s ODI captain, last played a T20 international against England Women in Guwahati in March this year.
There was a lot of speculation on whether the veteran batsman will be considered by the selectors for the upcoming home series against South Africa, with the focus on youngsters ahead of next year’s T20 World Cup in Australia. Mithali though had earlier made herself available for the series. The selectors are scheduled to meet in Mumbai on September 5 to pick the squad for the first three T20 Internationals against South Africa.
Mithali led India in 32 T20Is including the three Women’s WT20 World Cups in 2012 (Sri Lanka), 2014 (Bangladesh) and 2016 (India). She was also the captain in India Women’s first-ever T20I played in Derby back in 2006. Since that win against England Women, Mithali played another 88 games in which she scored 2364 runs, the most by an Indian woman in T20Is. Mithali is also the first Indian to reach the landmark of 2000 T20I runs.
“After representing India in T20 internationals since 2006, I wish to retire from T20Is to focus my energies on readying myself for the 2021 One Day World Cup. It remains my dream to win a World Cup for my country and I want to give it my best. I thank the BCCI for their continuous support and wish the Indian T20 team good luck as they prepare for the home series against South Africa Women,” Mithali was quoted as saying in the BCCI press release.
India reached their second ever ICC World Cup (50 over) final under Mithali’s captaincy in 2017. The women’s team under Harmanpreet Kaur’s captaincy lost in the semi-final of the 2018 ICC WT20 in West Indies. Speculation has been rife over Mithali’s future in T20s ever since she was controversially left out of the playing eleven for the World T20 semi-finals against England last year.
It was followed by a controversy in which Mithali accused then head coach Ramesh Powar of plotting against her. Captain Harmanpreet Kaur and vice-captain Smriti Mandhana though had made a public statement backing Powar and stating that the decision to leave Mithali out of the playing XI was taken together as a team.