Ranji Trophy 2020-21: Sheldon Jackson to represent Puducherry after 14-year stint with Saurashtra

Sheldon Jackson to represent Puducherry: The Saurashtra stalwart has decided to now play as a professional for Puducherry.

Batsman Sheldon Jackson has decided to end his 14-year association with Saurashtra as he will be seen representing Puducherry in the upcoming Indian domestic season.

Jackson, who made his List A debut for Saurashtra in 2006, has scored 8,501 runs in 185 matches (mostly for Saurashtra) across formats. Having emerged as a premier batsman for the state over the years, Jackson has also amassed 25 centuries across first-class and List A cricket.

Jackson’s decision comes out as a surprising one as he had played a vital role in Saurashtra’s Ranji Trophy winning campaign last season. Having scored 809 runs in 10 matches at an average of 50.56 including three centuries and as many half-centuries, Jackson was Saurashtra’s highest run-scorer in the last Ranji season.

Cricket Association of Pondicherry have made big coup. They have acquired Saurashtra’s Sheldon Jackson as one of their professionals alongside Paras Dogra (retained) and Pankaj Singh (back to Pondicherry after a year) for the @BCCIdomestic season #RanjiTrophy

— Venkata Krishna B (@venkatatweets) July 12, 2020

Sheldon Jackson to represent Puducherry

Jackson, 33, has become the second high-profile name after Tamil Nadu pacer Sandeep Warrier to shift states before this year’s domestic season. Considering the ramifications of the COVID-19 pandemic, it still remains unclear if teams would play a truncated season or a full one.

“This has been one of the hardest decisions that I had to make and it’s not been easy for me but I feel it the right time for me to move on and play as a professional in some other team or state.

“The journey so far has been fantastic and I am thankful to everyone at Saurashtra Cricket Association for standing by my side in my good and bad times,” Jackson mentioned in a press release by SCA (Saurashtra Cricket Association).

“Sheldon Jackson has been an outstanding Cricketer and great human being. I sincerely wish him all the very best,” SCA President Jaydev Shah said in a release.

While Jackson played in the Elite Pool at Saurashtra, he will now be seen playing in the Plate Group at Puducherry.

About the author

Dixit Bhargav

Born and brought up in Pathankot, Dixit Bhargav is an engineering and sports management graduate who works as a Cricket Editor at The SportsRush. Having written more than 10,000 articles across more than five years at TSR, his first cricketing memory dates back to 2002 when former India captain Sourav Ganguly had waved his jersey at the historic Lord’s balcony. What followed for an 8-year-old was an instant adulation for both Ganguly and the sport. The optimist in him is waiting for the day when Punjab Kings will win their maiden Indian Premier League title. When not watching cricket, he is mostly found in a cinema hall watching a Punjabi movie.

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