Farewell disparity in Indian Cricket: Sachin Tendulkar celebrated, Virat Kohli, Ashwin & Pujara overlooked?
Farewells are important in anyone’s life, especially if the individual is connected with an association for a long time. It provides emotional closure, facilitating a transition to the new stages of life. It’s a platform for people to come together, grieve together, and say goodbye together. For a sportsperson, it’s about reflecting on their achievements and the moments they created.
In India, it’s hard to remember cricketers getting a grand farewell, especially in recent times. The former left-arm pacer, Ashish Nehra, was the last one to enjoy the occasion at his home ground, the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. Before him, it was Sachin Tendulkar in Mumbai. Those three days at the Wankhede Stadium were nothing but a festival in the country.
However, since then, several contributors to Indian cricket hung up their boots in Tests. None of them got their deserved farewells. That’s where the BCCI has to learn from the rest of the world cricket.
Read More: Cheteshwar Pujara retires: ‘The Rock’ of Indian cricket who stood firm like ‘The Wall’
Sachin Tendulkar’s grand farewell glued entire of India together
In India, in the past, favourites were allowed to select their date of departure. Very rarely, a board member or the selector would push the top player to end their career. Greats had been carried by the team, because there would be a landmark on the horizon. Kapil Dev was allowed to stretch his career till he had overtaken Sir Richard Hadlee’s then record of 431 Test scalps.
Tendulkar was allowed to play his 200th Test in Mumbai. It would have been absurd had his farewell not been held in India. The board sandwiched the West Indies series between the end of the home Australia series and the South Africa trip.
There were multimedia tributes to the lead-up to the series. A final Test innings of 74 in two and a half hours with signature straight drives and creamy cover drives highlighted the occasion. The instant heavy silence after his dismissal was followed by gun-salute applause. At the end of the game, his teammates gave him a guard of honour with the famous picture of Tendulkar bowing down to the 22-yard.
Nearly 24 years of memories were summed up in 20 minutes during an emotional speech. Everyone, even the hard-boiled individual, had water in the eyes. A lap of honour on the shoulders of MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli took place with familiar chants of Sachin-Sachin. Tendulkar walked away from the cricket pitch for one last time. It was only then that the world realised how the game would not remain the same again.
Apart from Tendulkar, a few other cricketers from world cricket also got grand farewells. All of Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, and Angelo Matthews got guard honours during the Test farewell. Matthews ‘ retirement a few months ago against Bangladesh shows the evergreen appreciation of the Sri Lanka board.
The same happened when Sir Alastair Cook announced his decision to retire after the end of the fifth Test of the 2018 summer. There was a slightly different scenario for James Anderson, who was tapped on the shoulder by Rob Key and Brendon McCullum. They wanted to build a new side before the Ashes 2025/26. This pushed the Lancashire pacer to end his 22-year-old career at Lord’s in a grand farewell.
But what about the three building blocks of Indian cricket, Ravichandran Ashwin, Virat Kohli, and Cheteshwar Pujara? They contributed immensely to the country’s Test success in recent years. Don’t they deserve the same occasion?
Read More: Virat Kohli: The leader India wanted in Tests
Political issues or lack of player management? BCCI’s failure to acknowledge veterans’ contribution
It was in the middle of the third BGT 2024/25 Test down under when Ashwin announced his international retirement. In Brisbane, through the press meet along with captain Rohit Sharma, India’s second leading wicket taker across formats called it a day. He reckoned that being on the sidelines on trips pushed him to make the decision.
“I mean, not in terms of not wanting to contribute to the team, but you’re thinking if I would rather be at home, spending time with children. They are also growing up, and what am I actually doing? In my head, I had always decided that I would retire at 34-35.” Ashwin told former captain and coach of India, Rahul Dravid, in a chat on his YouTube channel.
During the IPL 2025, Rohit announced his Test retirement. The fans didn’t even overcome the situation by the time Virat Kohli hung up his shoes before the away England series. There was silence. Many felt that the Delhi-born wasn’t handled properly by the board. Moreover, it was a decision of choosing between retirement and getting dropped.
Now, three weeks after the end of the seven-week trip, Pujara declared his retirement from Indian cricket. Is there internal politics in the BCCI? Or is the board too attentive in giving zero importance to individual brilliance? Pujara’s situation is, however, different, given his last Test coming in June 2023.
At times, a normal social media post in the morning shouldn’t be enough to celebrate a veteran’s illustrious Test career. The fans deserve more. And there is nothing wrong with it. Communication becomes key here, and that is really poor from the BCCI. The board needs to keep in touch with these players.
If the same trend continues in the future, then a lot of legendary players will leave the ground unknowingly. The fans won’t get the chance to appreciate their efforts. And there is a scope to take lessons for the BCCI on how to manage their greats of the game.
Read More: Adieu Ravichandran Ashwin: One of the most cerebral cricketers ever
