Vijay Shankar has quietly shut the door on Indian domestic cricket and the IPL, freeing himself to sign with overseas franchises – something the BCCI does not permit active domestic players to do. The 35-year-old seam-bowling all-rounder confirmed the decision on Instagram, signing off as “Your 3D cricketer”.
For context, Shankar played 12 one-day internationals and nine T20Is between 2018 and 2019. At the last count he owned 223 ODI runs at 31.85, 101 T20I runs at 25.25 and a handy strike rate either side of 90 in the longer white-ball format and 138 in the shorter one. His medium-pace claimed 154 wickets across all recognised formats.
Domestic return on investment
Most of Shankar’s work came for Tamil Nadu. He captained the side to the Vijay Hazare, Deodhar and Syed Mushtaq Ali titles, before a late-career stint with Tripura in 2025-26. His parting first-class innings – an unbeaten 151 against Gujarat in February – won both the match and the Player-of-the-Match medal. First-class numbers settled at 4253 runs at 46.73; List A at 2790 runs at 34.87; T20s at 2583 runs at 26.09, delivered at 128.37 runs per hundred balls.
IPL and auction reality
Seventy-eight IPL matches over 11 seasons produced 1031 runs and 12 wickets. Yet the 2025 auction passed him by. He had entered as an uncapped player – more than five years had elapsed since his last India cap – and no franchise lifted the paddle. It was, in practical terms, the moment he started weighing up life in other leagues.
World Cup flash and fracture
Shankar’s India highlight remains the 2019 World Cup in England, though it ended abruptly. At the time India were searching for a reliable No.4. Former selector MSK Prasad said the all-rounder offered “three dimensions” – batting, bowling and fielding – an observation that ticked the balance box for conditions expected to aid seamers. Ambati Rayudu, the batter who missed out, tweeted, “Just ordered a new set of 3d glasses to watch the World Cup.”
Shankar did start well: a wicket with his first ball against Pakistan at Old Trafford, then another later in the spell, plus a composed 29 with the bat. A Jasprit Bumrah yorker in the nets fractured his toe soon after, ruling him out of the tournament and, as it turned out, easing him towards the fringe.
Voices on the move
Speaking to a local channel on Wednesday, Shankar said he felt “ready for a different cricketing experience”, adding that he had “ticked most of the boxes at home”. The Tamil Nadu coach, S Badrinath, called the retirement “inevitable”, noting the squeeze on all-rounder slots in the current state set-up. A Gujarat Titans staff member, requesting anonymity, admitted the franchise “considered him at the auction but went younger”.
Options elsewhere
The new status makes Shankar eligible for leagues such as the CPL, BPL, ILT20 and The Hundred. He has not named a preferred destination but hinted he is “keen to test himself in unfamiliar conditions”. With one-day skills, middle-order nous and a cutter-heavy brand of medium pace, he should find suitors.
Reality check, respectful farewell
Shankar’s story is neither fairy-tale nor failure. A dozen India caps, an IPL winner’s medal with Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2016, three domestic trophies as captain, and the trust of selectors for a World Cup spot – these are achievements worth a nod. Equally, injuries, auction lapses and the relentless influx of younger talent caught up with him. He leaves, by his own admission, “content, curious and still competitive”.
The next chapter will play out on foreign pitches. For now, Vijay Shankar has pressed pause on the Indian circuit, not on cricket itself.
