New Delhi: Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan has prepared a list of 11 retired cricketers and suggested a ‘charity-cum-farewell-game’ against the current Indian team. The idea is to give the retired players a proper farewell who have quit the game but have never received a proper send-off, which includes him also.
Pathan has listed the names — Gautam Gambhir (2018), Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman (both retired in 2012), Virender Sehwag (2014), Yuvraj Singh (2019), Ajit Agarkar (2007), Irfan Pathan (2019), Suresh Raina and MS Dhoni (both in 2020).
Pathan tweeted, “Many people are talking about a farewell game for retired players who didn’t get a proper send-off from the game. How about a charity cum farewell game from a team consisting of retired players vs the current Indian team?”
Many people are talking about a farewell game for retired players who didn’t get a proper send-off from the game. How about a charity cum farewell game from a team consisting of retired players vs the current Indian team? pic.twitter.com/diUiLXr9XQ
— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) August 22, 2020
Former Indian all-rounder Yuvraj Singh who also retired last year from international cricket after playing for 19 years, also believes that he didn’t receive the proper farewell, and towards the end of his career, the way BCCI has handled him was ‘unprofessional’.
“Giving someone a farewell, that’s not for me to decide. It’s up to the BCCI,” he had said. “But in the future, anybody who has played for India for a long time and has been through tough situations, you should definitely honour him. Give him that respect, somebody like Gautam Gambhir, who has won two World Cups for us. Sehwag, who has been the biggest match-winner after Sunil Gavaskar in Tests. Zaheer, who has 350 wickets, Laxman and all these guys.”
