Suresh Raina retires from IPL; likely to play Road Safety World Series and Overseas T20 Leagues

Suresh Raina has been out of the cricketing action since the IPL 2021 season concluded. The CSK stalwart was part of their 2021 triumph, however, it was a season to forget for Mr. IPL. Raina, known for his consistency in the league, could only manage to score 160 runs in 12 matches. In the later part of the season, Chennai management had decided to bench him for the first time in 14 years.

However, it was expected that the franchise will back him by buying him in the 2022 Mega Auction due to his loyalty to the franchise. But, the CSK management acted out of emotions and didn’t bid on him, and not any other franchise showed any interest in buying the CSK legend.

Suresh Raina retires from IPL, likely to play RSWS

After being disappeared from the sport for 2 years, the southpaw has given signs of return. As Dainik Jagaran reports to be believed, Suresh Raina retires from IPL to try his luck in the foreign T20 leagues. Also, the 35-year-old batter will no longer play domestic cricket for Uttar Pradesh.

“I want to continue playing cricket for two or three years. There are some exciting youngsters who are coming through the ranks of Uttar Pradesh cricket. I have already taken my No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association (UPCA). I have informed BCCI secretary Jay Shah and vice-president Rajiv Shukla about my decision,” Raina was quoted as saying by Dainik Jagran.

The report further says that Raina will be the part of India Legends squad for the Road Safety World Series starting September 10. Also, Suresh Raina has asked NOC from BCCI to allow him to play SA20, UAE T20 League and Sri Lanka’s LPL. He is currently in touch with CSK management to be part of their Johannesburg-based franchise.

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To date, only Yuvraj Singh was able to get NOC from BCCI for playing GT20 Canada. Unmukt Chand also played in BBL because of his USA citizenship. Now, it will be interesting to see whether the Indian board allows Raina to play in foreign or not.

Suresh Raina’s IPL Career

The left-hander is the most successful batter for the Chennai-based team as he has scored 4687 runs for them in 12 seasons. Additionally, he scored 841 runs for Gujarat Lions in the 2016 and 2017 editions. Nicknamed as Mr IPL, Raina is only the 3rd player apart from MS Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja to captain Chennai Super Kings.