Yuzvendra Chahal has ended his red-ball career. The India leg-spinner announced his retirement from first-class cricket on Friday through an Instagram post, closing a 17-year chapter that never included the one thing he wanted most, a Test cap.
In his message, Chahal said the Test cap was always a dream he carried for years. It did not happen, he wrote, but he feels content with the journey and grateful for the chances he got in the format.
His last red-ball match came at Lord’s. Playing for Northamptonshire against Middlesex in the County Championship, Chahal bowled in his final first-class game at the home of cricket. His team lost by seven wickets, which ended their push for promotion in Division Two. Still, he finished the season well, with 21 wickets in five matches at an average of just over 16, including a nine-wicket match haul against Durham.
The numbers behind the career. He started with Haryana in 2009 and ended with 148 wickets in 49 first-class matches, with six five-wicket hauls. His best figures are 6 for 44 against Hyderabad in the 2016 Ranji Trophy. That same season, 2016-17, was his best in red-ball cricket, with 33 wickets in seven matches.
This is not the end of his playing days. Chahal has made it clear that he is only stepping away from the red ball. He wants to keep playing white-ball cricket and push for a return to India’s ODI and T20 sides. He has played 72 ODIs and 80 T20Is for India, and his last international match was a T20I against West Indies in August 2023. In April 2024, he became the first bowler to take 200 wickets in the IPL, and he was part of India’s 2024 T20 World Cup-winning squad.
At 36, Chahal’s decision feels like a man choosing where to spend his remaining energy. The Test dream may stay unfinished, but the white-ball story is still being written.
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