Sachin Tendulkar surprised by Ajinkya Rahane's retirement decision
Tendulkar expected Rahane to play longer, but the batter chose to retire without regrets.
Ajinkya Rahane announced his retirement from international cricket on July 30. Sachin Tendulkar was the first person to call. He told Rahane he'd expected him to keep playing, but the 38-year-old said he didn't want to stretch his career any further.
Rahane also heard from Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah. Across 85 Tests, 90 ODIs and 20 T20Is he scored more than 8,000 runs. His last innings came against West Indies in Port of Spain in 2023. Three years earlier he'd led India to a 2-1 Border-Gavaskar Trophy win in Australia when the senior players were out injured.
He cried after filming his retirement video. He'll play for Steve Waugh's Amsterdam Flames in the first season of The Hundred.