LISTICLE
Follow UsRetired out is something that has come into effect quite recently. It’s a mode of “dismissal” wherein the batter walks off, allowing the next batter to come in. Just like handling the ball, this wicket is not attributed to any bowler, but it is, in fact, a strategic move deployed by the batting side, allowing the next batter to take his place.
The most recent incident took place in Canada in the Global T20 final when Nepal’s Dipendra Singh Airee decided to head back to pave the way for Andre Russell to come in. Airee walked off when his side Montreal Tigers, needed 25 runs more to win off the final 12 deliveries. Airee was struggling to get going, having taken 17 deliveries to score 16.
The move proved to be a masterstroke as Russell scored 20 off six, including a six off the final delivery to help his side to the title.
On that note, let us look at some of the other such incidents in cricket.
Ravichandran Ashwin (Rajasthan Royals)
As many as three players have retired out in the IPL – the first was last season when Ravichandran Ashwin made way for Riyan Parag to walk in. Ashwin had scored 28 off 23 deliveries against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at the Wankhede Stadium, however, with not many deliveries, Ashwin decided to hand Parag a chance to finish in a flurry.
Parag walked in with 10 balls left and finished with eight off four, including a six to take his side to 165, which just about proved to be enough.
Sai Sudharsan (Gujarat Titans)
Striking at close to 139 in Qualifier 2 against Mumbai Indians (MI) in IPL 2023, Sai Sudharsan voluntarily walked off to get Rashid Khan into the crease with just one over left. Skipper Hardik Pandya was going great guns at the other end, and Rashid, in the two deliveries he faced, scored five, including a four off the very first delivery. GT eventually got to 233, which proved more than enough to topple MI and make it to the IPL final.
Atharva Taide (Punjab Kings)
23-year-old Atharva Taide had already played some handy knocks in IPL 2023. He caught the eye with a brilliant 36-ball 66 against Lucknow. They needed a similar innings from him once again, this time against Delhi Capitals (DC), who had set PBKS 124 to win. Taide did not make the best of starts but managed to catch up to a certain extent and reached 55 off 42, but with 71 runs more to get off the last five overs, it made sense for big-hitters like Jitesh Sharma, Shahrukh Khan and Sam Curran to get their team over the line, with Liam Livingstone going great guns.
However, the move did not work out as planned as barring Livingstone (94), none of them stepped up, and in the end, Punjab fell short by 15 runs.
Carlos Brathwaite (Birmingham Bears) & Samit Patel (Nottinghamshire)
In one of the rarest cases, two batters retired out in the same match. In a match that was reduced to eight overs per side, in the T20 Blast 2022, Bears skipper Carlos Brathwaite. He was going well, having scored 17 off 11, but with the last over bowled by leg-spinner Calvin Harrison, against whom he struggled earlier in the game, he decided to bring himself off, allowing Sam Hain to come in. While Hain did not get a ball, his partner Alex Davis smashed 14 off 4 to take his side to 98 for 5.
Samit Patel retired out with Notts needing three off the final delivery – after a no-ball - to allow Harrison to come in, perhaps due to his ability to run faster. However, Craig Miles held his nerve off the free-hit delivery and conceded just a single.
Piyush Dahiya (Haryana)
The impact rule was given a trial run in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy last season before it was introduced in the IPL in 2023. Haryana batter Piyush Dahiya played all three matches in SMAT 2022 as an impact player. However, in the preliminary quarter-final against Punjab at Eden Gardens – Dahiya became the first-ever impact sub to retire out.
He came in as an impact sub for opening batter Yuvraj Singh but struggled to get going, managing just seven off 11 deliveries during his 23-minute stay at the crease. Rahul Tewatia came in for him, but in the end, Haryana ended up losing by 49 runs.
Marvan Atapattu & Mahela Jayawardene (Sri Lanka)
Earlier in the list, we saw two players retire out in a T20 game. However, in a first such incident in Test cricket Sri Lanka duo of Marvan Atapattu and Mahela Jayawardene retired out against Bangladesh in 2001 at the SSC, Colombo.
Muttiah Muralitharan’s fifer helped Sri Lanka bundle Bangladesh out for a mere 90, and Sri Lanka took control of the match completely, with Atapattu putting on 144 for the first wicket with Sanath Jayasuriya (89 off 56). Kumar Sangakkara, too scored a fifty at three before Jayawardene walked in.
Jayawardene and Atapattu, too, made the Bangladesh bowlers toil. However, they would have breathed a sigh of relief after the latter decided to walk back to the pavilion after getting to his double hundred. Jayawardene, too, decided to follow suit after getting to his milestone of 150.
Sri Lanka declared after taking a mammoth 465-run lead. Bangladesh showed some resistance in the second innings thanks to a fifty by Aminul Islam and a ton a debut from Mohammad Ashraful, but they still lost by an innings and 137 runs.
Rashid Khan (Lahore Qalandars)
While Rashid Khan came in after Sudharsan retired out in the IPL, in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), he was the one who made way. By the time Rashid came in, Qalandars were down and out at 71 for 6, chasing 197 against Karachi Kings, but when he struggled to get going, managing just six off 13.
It did not have any impact on the match, as Lahore went on to lose by 86 runs.
Hevit Jackson (France)
Hevit Jackson of France has the distinction of being the only cricketer to have retired out twice – and he did it in a span of six days!
During the ICC T20 World Cup Sub Regional Europe Qualifier fixture last year against the Czech Republic, Jackson, who opened the batting for France, walked off after scoring 38 off 43 deliveries, with five overs to spare, but managed to put up 113 for the first wicket with Gustav McKeon. However, France managed just 50 more runs after that, but it was good enough to win the game by 51 runs.
A week later, it was against Estonia that Jackson decided to leave the field, not before scoring 50 off 39 deliveries. He once again put on a terrific opening stand (121) with McKeon (87). Once Hevit retired out, his team managed just 31 runs from 21 to put up 183 for 7. In reply, Estonia managed just 124 for 8.
Others:
Shahid Afridi - Pakistanis vs Northamptonshire, Northampton, 2010
Sonam Tobgay - Bhutan vs Maldives, Kirtipur, 2019
Ashen Bandara - Kandy Falcons vs Jaffna Kings, Pallekele, 2022
Sunzamul Islam - Comilla Warriors vs Chattogram Challengers, Mirpur, 2019
Ikram Alikhil - Band-E-Amir Dragons vs Speen Ghar Tigers, Kabul, 2022
Mustapha Suwareh - Gambia vs Ghana, Kigali, 2022
