DUBAI: Australian all-rounder Shane Watson retired from all forms of cricket on Tuesday, drawing the curtain on an injury-plagued career which he managed to extend by reinventing himself as a journeyman Twenty20 specialist.

Watson ended his Test career in 2015 and quit international cricket the next year, surrendering in his battle against a litany of injuries that bedevilled his career.

He quit Big Bash League last year but played this year’s Indian Premier League where his team Chennai Super Kings failed to make the playoff.

“It really does feel like the right time now that I’ve played my last game of cricket ever for my beloved CSK...” the popular blond said in a video on his YouTube channel.

“To think that I’m finishing my playing days as a 39-year-old, after all of my injury setbacks that I had along the way, I feel so ridiculously fortunate,” said Watson who made 14 in his last outing against Kolkata Knight Riders on Thursday.

Watson has made nothing public but media reports said he told his Chennai team-mates of his decision in an ‘emotional’ speech after their last IPL game on Sunday.

For an injury-prone player, Watson played 59 Tests, 190 ODIs and 58 T20 Internationals in his 14-year international career.

The brevity of 20-overs cricket suited the all-rounder who played franchise cricket in Australia, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and West Indies.

He helped Rajasthan Roy­als win the inaugural IPL title in 2008, when he was adjudged player of the tournament, and also won the 2018 crown with Chennai.

He has played more than 700 international and domestic matches, scoring more than 25,000 runs with his big-hitting style and claiming in excess of 600 wickets with his pace bowling.

Published in Dawn, November 4th, 2020