The Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2025 set batsmen themselves are leaving the field in a 'retired out'. Tilak Verma was 'retired out' in the match between Lucknow Super Giants and Mumbai Indians on 4 April, while in the match between Punjab Kings and Chennai Super Kings on 8 April, Devon Conve also had to return to the pavilion. This decision surprised not only the players but also the cricket lovers.
Tilak Verma's 'retired out'
In the match between Mumbai Indians and Lucknow Super Giants on April 4, Tilak Verma was 'retired out' with 7 balls remaining after scoring 25 off 23 balls. This decision was taken before the last over of the match. Then Mumbai Indians had to score 24 runs off 7 balls. Suddenly, many questions arose when Tilak was sent out of the field, especially when Hardik Pandya was playing fiercely at the other end. Regarding this decision, Mumbai Indians coach Mahela Jayawardene said that this was a strategic decision as Tilak Verma was out of the strike and he was having difficulty in scoring fast runs.
Devon Conway's 'Retired Out' decision
In the match between Punjab Kings and Chennai Super Kings on 8 April, Devon Conway was 'retired out' after scoring 69 off 49 balls. At that time Chennai needed 49 runs in 13 balls. After this decision, Ravindra Jadeja was sent to bat, but this strategy proved to be a failure. After the match, Chennai captain Rituraj Gaikwad clarified the decision that when the run rate started increasing and Conway could not score fast, it was decided to recall him.
Reactions of experts and cricketers
Former Australian captain Michael Clarke expressed surprise at the decision, while former Indian cricketers Piyush Chawla and Wasim Jafar described it as a late decision. Meanwhile, Chennai Super Kings coach Stephen Fleming admitted that the team's batting pace in the middle overs had slowed down, but he expressed happiness that the team crossed 200 runs for the first time this season.
What is 'retired out'?
'Retired out' is a strategic decision in which the team forcibly sends their batsman out of the field during the match so that another player can be given a chance. This decision is taken when the batsman is not able to maintain the run rate or he is not getting much time to play. However, this decision is not always considered correct, especially when the player is set and in a position to score runs.
Other players who are retired out in IPL
Even before this, some players have been retired out in IPL, of which prominent names are:
- Ravichandran Ashwin (vs Lucknow Super Giants, Wankhede, 2022)
- Atharva Tayday (Banam Delhi Capitals, Dharamshala, 2023)
- Sai Sudarshan (vs Mumbai Indians, Ahmedabad, 2023)
- Tilak Verma (vs Lucknow Super Giants, Lucknow, 2025)
- Devon Conve (vs Punjab Kings, New Chandigarh, 2025)
