IPL 2020: Shane Watson to retire from all forms of cricket

Shane Watson, one of the classy all-rounders, is prepared to retire from all forms of cricket. The Aussie opener made the decision after CSK won their last league match against Kings XI Punjab on Sunday in Abu Dhabi.

The 39-year-old had already quit international cricket in 2016, and since then, he was actively playing in domestic cricket tournaments.

A CSK official had earlier told that Watson was very emotional when he told the CSK dressing room after the last game. Watson expressed his feelings saying that it was a great privilege for him to play for the CSK. There are chances that he might stay with CSK as a member of their support staff. In this regard, the source had stated that Watson has always been a fantastic player for CSK, and Dhoni knows how important a player like Watson can be if used properly.

Watson joined the "Yellow Army" in 2018 and subsequently has been a crucial player for CSK. The experienced all-rounder scored 299 runs from eleven games at an average of 29.90 in IPL 2020. He hit two fifties this season. In IPL 2019, he scored 398 runs at an average of 23.41 and hit three fifties.

The Australian will be acknowledged as one of the most successful all-rounders in IPL. He has scored 3874 runs and picked up 92 wickets from 145 matches.

Watson had a lucrative 7-year journey with the Rajasthan Royals before becoming a part of Royal Challengers Bangalore. He did not find much success with RCB and was revived by CSK in 2018. Watson was part of CSK's third title-winning campaign in 2018. He hit 117 in 57-balls in the final against Sunrisers Hyderabad.

Shane Watson might continue as CSK support staff

In the 2019 season, Watson was not able to repeat his consistency, but still, the team management showed faith in him, and he delivered at the end of the tournament. Watson smashed 80 runs in the final match against MI, but CSK lost the game by one run.

Shane Watson has always been consistent across all the high-profile T20 leagues. He was the highest run-scorer with 430 runs from 12 innings in the 2018-19 season of Pakistan Super League.

The Australian cricketer has won the ICC World Cup twice, in 2007 and 2015. Watson has scored 3731 runs and picked up 75 wickets in Tests. He has also scored 5757 runs in ODIs and took 168 wickets to finish his career as one of the leading all-rounders of the golden era.

READ MORE Cricket articles here!