'Congratulations Bhavesh' - Virat Kohli tweets on Suresh Raina's retirement

Following the footsteps of his idol and best friend MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina also announced his retirement from all the three formats of the game minutes after Dhoni’s decision to bid adieu to international cricket.

Raina made his debut for Men in Blue on July 30, 2005 in an ODI match against Sri Lanka at Dambulla. Though the veteran cricketer didn’t have an impressive start as he went back to the pavilion on a duck, he worked harder and became one of the finest all-rounders for the Indian cricket team.

In a career that spanned over 14 years, Raina represented India in 18 Tests, 226 ODIs, and 78 T20 Internationals scoring 768, 5615, 1605 runs respectively. Along with establishing himself as an exemplary batsman, Raina also cemented his place as one of the best fielders to have ever graced the gentleman’s game for India.

The Uttar Pradesh stalwart has also registered his name as the first Indian player to have scored a century in all the three formats of the game in cricket history. Raina last donned the Indian jersey in 2018 in a One Day International against England and was hoping to make a comeback for the Indian team.

At present, the 33-year-old is in Chennai along with his IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings for a six-day conditioning camp before they fly to the UAE on August 21. He will be again seen in action in the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League which is scheduled from September 19 to November 10 in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah. The cricketer would be looking forward to taking his team to victory for the fourth time in the tournament under the leadership of MS Dhoni.

Virat Kohli wishes Suresh Raina

As soon as the news of Raina walking away from the gentleman’s game broke out on social media, a lot of Indian cricketers including the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Shikhar Dhawan, Shahid Afridi, Brad Hogg, Virender Sehwag and many more paid tribute to him.

The current Indian skipper Virat Kohli also extended his warm wishes to the veteran cricketer and wished him all the best for his future endeavours.

Kohli tweeted, “Congratulations on a top career Bhavesh. Goodluck with everything ahead”

Congratulations on a top career Bhavesh. Goodluck with everything ahead 😊👍 @ImRaina

— Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) August 15, 2020