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India's Test vice-captain Rishabh Pant penned a heartfelt note for his Lucknow Super Giants teammate and friend Nicholas Pooran, who recently announced his retirement from international cricket.
The former West Indies T20I captain continued the trend of retirements this year after he bid adieu to the international circuit on Tuesday. The 29-year-old, the West Indies' most capped player and top run-scorer in the T20Is, described his decision as "difficult". Pooran shares the same dressing room with Pant in the cash-rich IPL and has a close bond with the Indian southpaw off the field. Pant wished the "absolute powerhouse" success on the road ahead of him and congratulated him for everything that he achieved with the Caribbean side. "You have made your mark bro - a true teammate, friend and an absolute powerhouse. Proud to have shared the field with you, Congrats on everything you have done for West Indies cricket. Wishing you nothing but success for the road ahead. Respect always," Pant wrote on Instagram. Pooran's announcement came a week after South Africa's power-hitter Heinrich Klaasen pulled the curtains down on his international career. Before Klaasen, Glenn Maxwell called time on his ODI career to shift his focus solely on T20I cricket. The 29-year-old southpaw's decision comes after he requested Cricket West Indies not to consider him for their ongoing white-ball tour of England. With over eight months left before the T20 World Cup 2026 kicks off in India and Sri Lanka, Pooran's decision is a massive setback for the 2016 winners. "Wearing that maroon, standing for the anthem, and giving everything I had each time I stepped on the field... it's hard to put into words what that truly means to me. To have led the team as captain is a privilege I will always hold close to my heart," Pooran wrote on Instagram. Pooran's journey in the white-ball format was nothing short of a rollercoaster ride. After being suspended in 2019 for ball tampering, Pooran bounced back to steer West Indies to a 4-1 series victory over Australia in Kieron Pollard's absence. He had his last dance with the Men in Maroon during their encounter against Bangladesh at Kingstown. Bangladesh ousted the Caribbean giants with a comprehensive 80-run victory. Since bursting onto the international scene in 2016, Pooran featured in 106 T20Is and 61 ODIs, garnering more than 4,258 runs across both formats. He mustered up 2,275 in the shortest format of cricket, averaging 26.14 at 136.39. While in the 50-over cricket, he tallied 1,983 runs at 39.66 while maintaining a strike rate of 99.15, laced with three centuries and 11 fifties. (ANI)
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