Rahul Dravid retires from international cricket

BANGALORE, India (AP) — Rahul Dravid has announced his retirement from both international and domestic first-class cricket after a 16-year career that saw him acclaimed as one of the best batsmen of his era.

The 39-year-old made the announcement Friday at a media conference he addressed jointly with Board of Control for Cricket in India president Narainswamy Srinivasan.

"I would like to announce my retirement from test and domestic first-class cricket," Dravid said. "I've played for 16 years and it was time I moved on to give a chance to youngsters to take the team forward. I've had a wonderful time and thank the BCCI for giving me the opportunity to play for the country."

Dravid, who has already retired from one-day and Twenty20 cricket, scored five centuries in 2011 but could manage only 194 runs during India's recent 4-0 test whitewash in Australia.

Dravid has scored 13,228 runs in 164 tests with 36 centuries, and 10,889 runs in 344 one-dayers with 12 centuries. He also holds the record for most catches by a fielder in tests with a tally of 210.

"I was like every other boy in India, with a dream of playing for my country. Yet I could never have imagined a journey so long and so fulfilling. No dream is ever chased alone," he said, thanking his coaches, captains and selectors who backed him over the years.

Dravid is among a select band of players to have reached five-figure run career totals in both test and one-day cricket and was recognized for his performances by being named one of Wisden's Cricketers of the Year in 2000 and ICC player of the year at the ICC's inaugural awards ceremony in 2004.

"He has been a great ambassador for the game and for India," Srinivasan said. "It is a sad day for me because I've seen him grow as a player."

Dravid's decision to retire seemed to have been hastened after he failed to pull India out of a recent eight-match losing streak in overseas tests in England and Australia, but he said it was a well contemplated decision.

"I did not take the decision based on what happened in recent series. I thought this was the time to go. It is a difficult moment, but it is a moment that has to come to everybody. I also know that in some ways it has been an easy decision," he said.

Dravid also thanked team mates, media and his family for their support over the years.

"In the Indian team, I was fortunate to be part of a wonderful era when India played some of its finest cricket at home and abroad. Many of my teammates have become legends, not just in India but in the wider cricketing world. I admired them, learnt from them and I leave the game with wonderful memories and strong friendships. It is a great gift to have," he said.

Dravid, who captained India from 2005 to 2007, has an impeccable record as only one of his first 32 centuries in tests resulted in a loss for India, but India lost three of the four games that Dravid got centuries in later - all of them in England last year.

He also played crucial roles in one-day games, especially World Cups.

Dravid was the highest scorer in the 1999 World Cup in England with 461 runs and took the additional role of wicketkeeper to lend balance to a Sourav Ganguly-led team that made the final of the 2003 World Cup in South Africa.

However, he was not a permanent member of limited overs sides after India crashed out of the 2007 World Cup in the Caribbean under his captaincy.

"My approach to cricket has been reasonably simple: it was about giving everything to the team, it was about playing with dignity, and it was about upholding the spirit of the game. I hope I have done some of that. I have failed at times, but I have never stopped trying. It is why I leave with sadness but also with pride," he said.

Dravid said he now looked forward to the small pleasures of life.

"I just want to do things like take my sons to school," said Dravid, who will lead the Rajasthan Royals in this year's Twenty20 Indian Premier League which runs from April 4 to May 27.