(Cricket news) Former T20 and now IPL star Suresh Raina turns 35 today. Raina was one of the most top rated batters in the T20 format for India, he was also a world class fielder known for his acrobatics and quick reflexes. Raina made his debut for the Indian team in 2005 in an ODI tri against Sri Lanka and West Indies, in his first match he got out for a golden duck when Muttiah Muralidaran trapped him for a leg before as India lost the match to Sri Lanka. In his second match, he got the wicket of one of West Indies batting greats Shivnarine Chanderpaul and then with the bat scored 35 runs. Raina went on to play 226 matches and score 5615 runs including 5 centuries and 36 half centuries. He was also a part time spinner who was put to good use by MS Dhoni as he took over 52 wickets in his career.
Raina was the first Indian and the third overall to score a century in a T20 international. He scored 101 of 60 balls against South Africa in 2010 at the ICC T20 World Cup which was the highest score of the tournament. He also played in India’s first T20 match in 2006 against South Africa, Raina played in 78 matches and scored 1604 runs and was known for his ability to find gaps.
In the Test match format, Raina featured in 18 matches and he scored a century on debut. He again played his first match in the format against Sri Lanka but this time he scored 120 as India then scored its second highest test score of 707. The match witnessed two double centuries and three centuries as Sri Lanka scored 642 in the first innings, Virender Sehwag was a run away from adding a fourth century of the match as the match finally ended in a draw. Raina did not score another century in the format but became the first Indian to score a century in all the three formats of the game. He last played a match for India in 2018 against England in the third ODI of India’s tour.
In the IPL, Raina has played 205 matches and is the fourth highest run getter with 5528 runs. He has flourished in the league especially with Chennai Super Kings and has played in every season of the league other than 2020, scoring 350 runs each season except this year. He has scored 400 plus runs in 9 seasons and has scored at least one half century in every season.
In the 2014 season, Chennai faced Punjab Kings in the second qualifiers as Virender Sehwag scored 122 to put his team on the front foot as the target was 227 for Chennai. Chennai lost its first wicket in the second ball as Raina walked in and played one of the most memorable knocks in IPL history as he scored 87 runs of 25 balls which had 12 fours and 6 sixes, he was then involved in an unfortunate run out as MS Dhoni’s cameo just wasn't enough for the win.
Raina announced his retirement last year on 15th August, minutes after close friend and teammate MS Dhoni retired from the game. He will continue to play in the IPL as there is still a lot left in him.
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