India’s U-19 World Cup-winning captain Unmukt announces retirement at the age of 28; teammates hail his call
Unmukt Chand. Pic/Instagram
India’s 2012 U-19 World Cup-winning captain Unmukt Chand’s decision to retire at the age of 28 was hailed by his teammates Akhil Herwadkar and Baba Aparajith.
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Riding on Chand’s unbeaten 111, India chased 226 to beat Australia by six wickets and emerge U-19 champions at Townsville, Australia in August 2012. Delhi-based Chand scored 3,379 runs in 67 first-class games. He will be playing T20 leagues in the United States like his 2012 teammate and wicketkeeper-batsman Smit Patel.
‘I wish him good luck’
“It’s his [Chand] decision to play in the US and I wish him good luck. He may get a good opportunity there. What is more important at this age is to play cricket and if he is getting opportunities there, then I think it’s a good decision,” Herwadkar told mid-day on Friday. Herwadkar, 26, who scored 2,399 runs while representing Mumbai in 38 first-class games, and will represent Chhattisgarh from the upcoming season, said Chand was a skipper, who always wanted to lead from the front.
Unmukt Chand with the U-19 World Cup Trophy. Pic/Mid-Day Archieves
“There is no doubt he is a good batsman. He single-handedly helped us win the U-19 World Cup final. He has all the qualities that a captain needs to have. Being a skipper, he did his job superbly throughout that tournament,” remarked Herwadkar.
Chennai-based Aparajith, 27, who contributed 33 in the U-19 World Cup final, said: “I have high regards for Unmukt. He is a very good cricketer and very good human being. What stands out for me is that, the kind of work he had put in all throughout his career is tremendous, he worked really hard. His work ethic has been immense.” The Tamil Nadu batsman, who has 3,952 runs from 78 first-class games, also has high respect for Chand’s captaincy skills. “He was a very good captain, a very good leader for all of us. In those two to three years we spent a lot of time together. He is someone we all looked up to and we had a very good relationship. This [retirement] is totally his decision, but I feel whatever he has done, whatever decision he has taken, he obviously would have thought about it a lot. He must have had his reasons for it,” added Aparajith.
A good opportunity: Harmeet
Left-arm spinner Harmeet Singh, who is playing for Seattle Thunderbolts in a USA minor league said: “Players are getting lot of respect here. It will create a good opportunity for Unmukt as well,” Harmeet, 28, who represented Mumbai and Tripura, told mid-day from Seattle.
Baba Aparajith and Akhil Herwadkar
Ex-chief selector Sandeep Patil shocked
Former selector Sandeep Patil told mid-day: “I’m very sad and shocked to hear about Unmukt’s retirement. Perhaps, he got frustrated. He was an absolute India material and was on my national selection committee’s radar.
“He was probably the only one among the players who I told during my stint as National Cricket Academy director that you should be playing for India and didn’t play. “He led India A and batted very well. He used to talk to me often and meet me in Mumbai. My advice to him was to keep trying and never give up. I’m sad.”
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