Veteran India leg-spinner Amit Mishra on Thursday announced his retirement from all forms of cricket, ending a career spanning more than two decades.
Having last played for India in 2017, the 42-year-old Haryana cricketer continued to feature in the IPL till the 2024 edition. Mishra confirmed his retirement to media over phone. “I have decided to retire,” said Mishra.
In a statement, Mishra said the decision was largely based on repeated injuries and the belief that the younger generation needed to take over. Mishra represented India in 22 Tests, 36 ODIs and 10 T20s. His Test career yielded 76 wickets, while in ODIs he snared 64 scalps.
He was a classical leg-break bowler who made his Test debut against Australia in 2008, five years after he made his India debut in an ODI against South Africa in 2003. With Harbhajan Singh and Anil Kumble starting most of the games at home, Mishra had to wait for his Test cap. It was a successful debut for him as he took a five-wicket haul in the first innings before picking a couple of more in the second essay. It ultimately became his only five-wicket haul in the traditional format.
“These 25 years (first class debut in 2000) of my life in cricket have been nothing short of memorable. I am deeply grateful to the BCCI, the administration, Haryana cricket association, the support staff, my colleagues and to my family members who were with me all this while.
“I would like to thank the fans whose love and support whenever and wherever I played made the journey memorable. Cricket has given me countless memories and invaluable learnings, and each moment on the ground has been a memory I’ll treasure for life,” Mishra said in a statement issued later.
His last competitive game was for Lucknow Super Giants in the 2024 IPL season. His international career stagnated after R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja entered the scene.
In the statement issued on Thursday, Mishra also expressed the desire to stay involved in the game via coaching and commentary. He racked up 535 wickets in a exemplary first class career while he collected 252 and 285 in List A and T20 cricket.
In the IPL alone, he took 166 wickets at a stellar average of 23.98 and a very acceptable economy rate of 7.36. He remains the only bowler to take three hat-tricks in the IPL.
representing four teams including SunRisers Hyderabad, Deccan Chargers, Delhi Capitals and LSG.
New Delhi: Amit Mishra’s start-stop international career had two distinct phases.
First was spent dealing with the immense pressure of expectations that came with replacing the legendary Anil Kumble.
The second part was about dealing with the competition that came with the emergence of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja — one an off-spinner and other a left-arm slow orthodox, who suited Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Virat Kohli’s plans to the ‘T’. The grammar of Test match batting had changed by then and hence Mishra’s 76 wickets in 22 Tests won’t be a fair assessment of his skills as a bowler, who had a sharp leg-break and an enticing googly but became the sparsely used third option behind Ashwin-Jadeja.
“It was a very disappointing thing. Sometimes you’re in the team, sometimes you’re out. Sometimes you get a chance in the playing eleven, sometimes you don’t. Of course, it’s frustrating, and I was frustrated many times, no doubt,” Mishra told in an exclusive interview after announcing his retirement from competitive cricket.
“But then you remember that your dream is to play cricket for India. You are with the national team and millions of people are working so hard just to be there. You are one of the 15 players on the Indian team. So, I tried to stay positive,” he added.
Despite his evident talent, Mishra admitted that being in and out of the Indian team was mentally tough.
“Whenever I was frustrated, I thought about what I could improve on. Whether it was my fitness, batting, or bowling, I always focused on getting better. Whenever I got a chance to play for the Indian team, I performed well and I’m very happy about that. I never shied away from hard work,” he added.
Mishra was always good but someone else would always show up brilliant — like Ashwin and Jadeja in red-ball cricket.
Ironical as it might seem, the last international match for Mishra was a T20I against England in Bengaluru in 2017 where he took 1/23 in four overs at the Chinnaswamy Stadium which is a batting paradise. If looked at in isolation, these are brilliant figures.
But in the same match, another leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal took 6 for 25. Mishra never played for India after that even in T20Is despite being an IPL legend — 174 wickets in 162 games, including a hat-trick
in 2008.
Mishra credits IPL for his comeback because suddenly performances got noticed.
“I’d say the defining moment was the hat-trick I took in the 2008 IPL, where I also took five wickets in the match. From there, I made a comeback to the Indian team. Before that, I was consistently performing well in domestic cricket, taking 35-45 wickets every season, but I couldn’t get back into the national team.
“That IPL hat-trick changed things for me. I had also performed well in Syed Mushtaq Ali the preceding year taking 25 wickets, which helped me get an IPL contract (Delhi Daredevils).
“After that hat-trick, I was back in the Indian team continuously and my career in T-20 also started. So, that hat-trick with five wickets in 2008 will be a defining moment of my life,” he said.
Mishra put forth his perspective about various captains having their preferred choice of bowlers and also that there was nothing wrong in it.
“Some players are captain’s favourites. But that doesn’t matter much. You just have to prove yourself whenever you get a chance. As I said, these things don’t matter. Sometimes a player who performs better than you is liked more, but when you start performing, it all changes.”
He always found bowling to Indian batters more challenging than overseas players in the IPL.
“Whenever I took the wicket of a well-known Indian player, I felt proud. Someone like Virender Sehwag, Rohit Sharma, Yuvraj Singh, Gautam Gambhir, or Virat Kohli-they are the kind of players who can change the game at any moment.
“You can trouble a foreign player with your skill, but with these guys, you know them in and out. When you get one of their wickets, you get a different, very positive feeling. I would say all Indian batsmen are difficult for a spinner to bowl against.” While taking a trip down memory lane, he remembered how skipper Anil Kumble informed him prior to the Mohali Test against Australia in 2008 about his debut.
“Anil Bhai told me in the morning of the match that he was injured. I played that match against Australia and took five wickets, which was a huge moment for me. It was a big thing to fill the shoes of Anil Kumble. There was pressure and I am glad that I won Player of the match on debut.”
Despite the rollercoaster ride, Mishra said he is bidding adieu without regrets.
“I’ve played cricket for 25 years across three decades with legends like Sachin Tendulkar, under leaders like MS Dhoni, and with current stars like Rohit Sharma. Now that I’m slowly stepping away, it’s emotional, of course. Cricket gave me everything -- respect, identity, and purpose.”
He knows where he stands and is practical about moving away from the game quietly.
“Not everyone gets a grand farewell or big press conference, and that’s okay. What matters to me is that I gave everything I had. I played with heart. I performed whenever I got the opportunity.
“And I’ve earned the love of fans and the respect of my peers -- that’s my biggest achievement.”