'Cap 278 Signing Off': Ajinkya Rahane Announces Retirement from International Cricket And All Formats

New Delhi: Senior India batter Ajinkya Rahane on Thursday announced his retirement from international cricket and all formats with immediate effect, and also said that the time is right for the cricketer to "move on". The 38-year-old, who led the team to a historic Test series win in Australia, shared an emotional message on social media.

What did Ajinkya Rahane say?

Ajinkya Rahane, who played an overall 85 Tests, 90 ODIs and 20 T20Is for India in a career which began in 2013, on Thursday in an Instagram post announced his retirement from all formats of the cricket.

On Thursday, Rahane shared an emotional post on Instagram, announcing his decision to end his illustrious career. Rahane captained the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the last season of the Indian Premier League (IPL), but will no longer play in the T20 league. Rahane stated clearly that he is retiring from all formats of cricket.

What is there in the post?

The 38-year-old in the social media post said that the time is right for him to "move on". "Today, I feel the timing is right for me to move on and announce my retirement from international cricket and all formats," Rahane said in an Instagram post. 

The former captain shared the post with the caption, "Cap 278 signing off. Thank you for all the love and support over the years. Forever grateful."

"The reality of life is that everything has a beginning and everything has an end. When the time comes, you simply have to respect it and move forward. I have always relied on timing in my batting and have always understood its importance," he said in the video posted on Instagram.

"Today, I feel the timing is right for me to move on and announce my retirement from international cricket and all formats. From those early days, travelling as a young boy just to practice, I gave this game everything I had. Every single day, every innings, every opportunity I got to bat, the dream was always to wear the India cap," Rahane added.

The veteran cricketer represented India in 195 international matches across Tests, ODIs and T20Is and scored over 5,000 runs in Test cricket, including 12 centuries.