New Delhi [India], January 3 (ANI): Saurashtra batter Sheldon Jackson has announced his decision to retire from limited-overs cricket to open opportunities for young talent.

Jackson retires with 2792 runs in 84 innings to his name. The highlight among some of his sensational performances is arguably his unbeaten 133, which helped Saurashtra lift their second Vijay Hazare Trophy title in 2022. His impressive run tally includes nine centuries and 14 half-centuries in all.

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The seasoned player's announcement comes in the middle of the Vijay Hazare Trophy, however, retirement is something that he has been contemplating for some time.

"It'd been at the back of my mind from even before the tournament, and I kept taking it game by game, but before the Punjab match, I told the team, but they wanted me to bow out on the field. It was a very gracious move from them, and I'm really thankful for that gesture," Jackson told ESPNcricinfo.

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Seeing Saurashtra's remarkable run in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 tournament, which saw them win six out of seven group-stage fixtures to reach the knockout stage convinced Jackson that it was time for him to retire.

"The way Saurashtra's youngsters played during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy convinced me my time was up," he said. "I didn't find it right to be blocking someone's spot. At 37-38, even if I score 5000 runs, I wasn't going to be in the reckoning for the national team. Or say I scored ten ducks, the worse that would've happened is I'd be out of the state team," he said.

"In that sense, there was no scope for growth. What's the point in me holding on to my spot when it wasn't going to lead me anywhere? I rang up Jaydev Shah [the Saurashtra Cricket Association president, who is currently in Australia as the India team manager] and expressed my thoughts and then communicated it to the captain [Jaydev Unadkat] and the coach [Niraj Odedra]." he added.

"I'd communicated the same to the selectors a week before SMAT. I'm not entirely sure how it would've played out - whether I made their decision easier or if it was already decided I won't be a part of it - but I'd decided the best thing to do was communicate clearly," he continued.

Even after taking retirement in the limited-over format, Jackson is still keen to feature in first-class cricket. The seasoned star is a two-time Ranji Trophy winner and boasts 103 first-class appearances. He is still hopeful of being able to provide Saurashtra a chance to win their third title.

"I still want to keep going in first-class cricket, at least for these two games, and then take it from there. I really don't know for how long. But my immediate focus is to try and see if I can help contribute towards us making the knockouts. It's tough, but it's still possible. And from there, I'll reassess after the two games about my red-ball future. I've had the complete support of the team, and Jaydev and Niranjan Shah. I hope I can finish on a high," he said. (ANI)

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