Shockingly, on Thursday evening, former India and SRH pacer Siddharth Kaul announced his retirement from Indian cricket after almost six years since his last international appearance for India. Talking about his retirement, Siddarth said he wanted to bid goodbye to his loving game on a high note. However, he also hinted in his retirement statement as he is open to opportunities in overseas leagues as he still feels he has 3 to 4 years of cricket left in him.
“I feel I still have 3-4 years of cricket left in me, but I wanted to go out on a high when I was at peak fitness and performing well rather than being asked to go due to fitness or non-performance at some other point.”
“If you see my graph over the past 9-10 years, I’ve been performing really well across formats. So I felt this was a good time to go. Hopefully going forward, whatever opportunities arise, like in county cricket [he represented Northamptonshire in three Division 2 Championship games this summer, picking up 13 wickets at 29.84], or Legends League, MLC etc, I’d like to explore them if I get the chance.”
Siddharth Kaul has played only six games for India (3 ODIs & 3 T20Is) between June 2018 and February 2019. He may have earned just six caps for the Indian team, but he was a consistent performer in domestic cricket. Kaul got his first break in the domestic circuit for Punjab in first-class cricket at the age of 17. Kaul made headlines a year later when he was a member of Virat Kohli’s triumphant India team at the Under-19 World Cup held in Malaysia. Yet, recurrent back ailments sidelined him for more than five years.
Between December 2007 and February 2012, Kaul played only six domestic matches in different formats. When he returned, he was part of Punjab’s developing generation of fast bowlers, which included Manpreet Gony, Sandeep Sharma, and Barinder Sran.
Kaul’s wicket-taking ability and death-bowling helped him become a valuable member of Punjab’s white-ball squad over time. He is all-time leading wicket-taker in both the Vijay Hazare Trophy (155 wickets) and the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (120), which proves his prowess in limited-overs cricket.
In 2017, he took 16 wickets in 10 games, and in 2018, he was SRH’s joint-highest wicket-taker with 21 in a season where they finished second to Chennai Super Kings. After playing consistently for Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH)in the IPL for two seasons, Kaul’s career reached zenith in 2018 when he was awarded a T20I cap on Ireland tour.
In the IPL, Kaul also played for the Delhi Daredevils, Kolkata Knight Riders, and Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
In the 2023-24 season, Kaul led Punjab to its first T20 title, taking 16 wickets in 10 games as they won the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He was also their leading wicket-taker in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, scalping 19 wickets in just six matches. Siddharth Kaul’s most recent appearance for Punjab was in the first part of the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy season, going wicketless in two matches.
Over a 17-year-long career for Punjab, Siddharth Kaul took 297 first-class wickets in 88 matches, averaging 26.77. He also took 199 List A wickets at 24.30 and 182 in T20s at 22.04, with an economy rate of 7.67.
For India Kaul played three ODIs and went wicketless with an economy rate of 6.62. In three T20Is, Siddharth Kaul played for India; he took 4 wickets with an economy of 8.68. Between 2013 and 2024, Kaul played 54 matches in IPL and took 58 wickets at a strike rate of 20.43 and an economy of 8.59.
Also Read: Mumbai Indians Players List 2025 Squad with Price
