Piyush Chawla, ek aisa naam jo Indian cricket ke itihas mein sada yaad rahega, ne kal, 6 June 2025 ko professional cricket se retirement ka elaan kiya. Yeh khabar sunke dil thoda udaas hai, kyunki ek shandaar career ka ant ho gaya. Chawla ka international career shayad utna lamba nahi raha jitna fans chahte the, sirf 3 Tests, 25 ODIs aur 7 T20Is khele, jismein unhone 43 wickets liye. Yeh sankhya dekhkar lagta hai ki shayad unhe zyada mauke nahi mile, ya unki kabiliyat ka poora istemaal nahi hua. Unka last international match 2012 mein T20 World Cup ke dauraan England ke khilaaf tha, aur uske baad woh national team mein wapas nahi aa sake, jo ki ek tarah se cricket fans ke liye nirasha thi.
Lekin yeh udasi ke bawajood, Chawla ke career ko dekhkar dil khush bhi hota hai. Unhone apne chhote se international career mein bhi badiya kaam kiya. 2007 T20 World Cup aur 2011 ODI World Cup jeetne wali Indian team ka hissa hona koi chhoti baat nahi thi. 2007 mein bhale hi unhone ek bhi match nahi khela, lekin 2011 World Cup mein unka contribution chhota par maayne rakhta tha. Unhone 25 ODIs mein 32 wickets liye, jismein unka best performance 4/23 tha. Yeh dikhaata hai ki jab mauka mila, unhone apni leg-spin se dushman team ko pareshan kiya. Domestic cricket mein toh unhone kamaal hi kiya—446 first-class wickets aur 319 T20 wickets! Uttar Pradesh ke liye 2005-06 Ranji Trophy jeetne mein unka bada yogdaan tha, jismein unhone 35 wickets liye aur 224 runs bhi banaye.
IPL mein Chawla ek alag hi star the. 192 matches mein 192 wickets—yeh sankhya unhe IPL ke third highest wicket-taker banati hai, sirf Yuzvendra Chahal (221 wickets) aur Bhuvneshwar Kumar (198 wickets) se peeche. Unhone Kings XI Punjab, Kolkata Knight Riders, Chennai Super Kings, aur Mumbai Indians ke liye khela, aur 2014 mein KKR ke liye title jeetne wali team ka hissa the. Woh pal jab unhone final mein Punjab Kings ke khilaaf winning runs maare, aaj bhi fans ke dil mein taza hai. Ek aur yaadgaar moment tha 2005-06 Challenger Series mein jab unhone Sachin Tendulkar ko googly se out kiya—sirf 17 saal ki umar mein! Yeh dikhaata hai ki Chawla mein kitna talent tha.
Chawla ka retirement cricket ke liye ek bada nuksan hai, lekin unki kahani yahan khatam nahi hoti. Unhone apne Instagram post mein likha, “Cricket hamesha mere dil mein rahega,” aur yeh baat unke passion ko dikhati hai. Unhone BCCI, Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association, Gujarat Cricket Association, aur apne IPL franchises ka shukriya ada kiya, sath hi apne late father ko yaad kiya jinhone unke sapne ko haqeeqat banaya. Unka yeh safar inspirational hai, khaas kar un chhote shehron ke khiladiyon ke liye jo bade sapne dekhte hain.
Par ant mein, thodi si udaasi phir se laut aati hai. Chawla jaise talented khiladi ko shayad international level par aur mauke milne chahiye tha. Unka career 2012 ke baad international cricket mein wapas na aana ek afsos ki baat hai. IPL 2025 ke liye bhi unhone Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy khela, ummeed thi ki shayad ek aur season dekhe, par ab woh sapna adhoora reh gaya. Cricket ab ek naye daur mein ja raha hai, aur Chawla jaisa ek legend ab sirf yaadon mein rahega.
