T20 retirement is not an overnight decision, says Jhulan Goswami
Having announced her retirement from the shortest format of the game, Jhulan Goswami has stated that her decision to opt out of playing T20Is was not taken overnight. The news has taken many by surprise considering the fact that India are slated to participate in the World T20 later this year.
As Jhulan Goswami's team, India Green crashed out of the Challenger Trophy, it was very hard to guess that it would be followed by news of she retiring from the T20 format completely. After BCCI’s official announcement of her retirement, ahead of the Women's T20 WC in the Caribbean Island, the news has taken many by surprise.
“Mithali knew. Mithu said 'you're ditching me and I'd be all alone in West Indies now'. But she understood my point of view when I explained it to her. It's not an overnight decision. I wasn't enjoying the format for a while now but I kept pushing myself saying, 'okay, let's try one more series maybe?'. But I wasn't able to enjoy it. So I decided it's better to concentrate my energies on just one format," Goswami told Cricbuzz.
“I have always tried to give my best on a cricket
Goswami had totally tried to push herself in accepting the 20-overs cricket. She gave herself a chance in the Asia Cup in which she, despite playing all the four matches, could only manage to pick a solitary wicket in her kitty. This was sort of an indication for Goswami to follow.
“Everybody I told, did. Everybody is still asking me 'why so close to the World Cup'. But I feel there is no point dragging it when you're not motivated to continue doing something. I've always played with a lot of passion. I started
“I treated Challengers as some match practice before the Sri Lanka tour because, see, we haven't played competitive cricket for a long time. You need match preparation, too. But I had made up my mind before landing here and I told the ones I wanted to speak with before making it official. I spoke to Mithu. I personally spoke to Ramesh sir; I had a long discussion with him. Hema di [Hemlata Kala, chairman of selectors], Lopa ma'am [Lopamudra Banerjee, member of selection panel] were all there. Then I told the board officials and they respected my decision. They were very supportive of this,” she added.
As she retired from T20Is, Goswami is still a bowler with a fifer in all the formats of the cricket that exist. She has taken 56 wickets in the total 68 appearances she has made internationally. She will now we dedicated herself in improving her performance in the ODI format.
“There's plenty of talent if you ask me. Good that Mansi has come back. She's a very talented cricketer. If she's fit, she can be a match-winner for India any day. Shikha is there and she's doing well. Now her role will change with the team, being the senior-most. Arundathi is also quite good.. a talented all-round cricketer. There are few medium-pacers I saw in this Challenger Trophy - they're good. They need to take