Kumble calls it a day
Sunday, November 2, 2008
India captain Anil Kumble has announced his retirement from international cricket with immediate effect, reports BBC.
The 38-year-old decided to stand down during the final day of the drawn third Test against Australia in Delhi after sustaining a finger injury.
The leg-spinner took 619 Test wickets, including all 10 wickets in an innings against Pakistan in Delhi in 1999, in his 18-year, 132-Test career.
Kumble’s successor has not been named but is likely to be Mahendra Dhoni.
The wicketkeeper led India to an emphatic 320-run win in Mohali in the second Test after a shoulder injury had ruled Kumble out.
His replacement Amit Mishra took seven wickets at the PCA Ground, heaping further pressure on Kumble, who had been wicketless in the drawn first Test in Bangalore.
The veteran had previously suggested he would retire on his terms after he faced constant questioning on the subject from the Indian media.
But he admitted a finger injury sustained on day three attempting to catch a difficult Matthew Hayden chance proved to be the catalyst for his decision.
“It was tough, especially after 18 years when you have been so competitive, but the body gave me the decision and the injury helped,” said Kumble, who needed 11 stitches on his little finger of his left hand.
“I had already made the decision yesterday (Saturday), I knew I would not be fit (for the Nagpur Test) and I don’t want to let the team down.”
Kumble stands third in the all-time leading wicket-takers in Test cricket, behind fellow spinners Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan.
He remains the only bowler to emulate Jim Laker’s feat of taking all 10 wickets in a Test innings with a match-winning 10-74 in Delhi nine years ago.
India lead the series 1-0 with one Test match to go, which starts in Nagpur on 6 Novemb