Sheldon Jackson leaves Saurashtra to play for Puducherry

Emerging wicketkeeper-batsman Sheldon Jackson has decided to leave Saurashtra to play for Puducherry in the upcoming season of the Ranji Trophy. The announcement comes just a few months after Saurashtra clinched their maiden Ranji Trophy title in March.

The ace batsman has scored 8,501 runs in 185 matches across formats and has amassed 25 centuries in his List-A and first-class career. The right-hander played a vital role in Saurashtra's maiden victory as he scored 809 runs in 10 matches (18 innings) in the 2019-20 season at an average of 50.56.

In his announcement, Sheldon Jackson said that while the decision has been one of the hardest that he has had to take, it is the optimal time for the move. The 33-year-old has got the No Objection Certificate (NOC) from SCA to play domestic cricket from other associations.

In a release issued by Saurashtra Cricket Association (SCA), Sheldon Jackson said:

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

Jackson added that he was thankful for the constant support he received from the authorities at the Saurashtra Cricket Association (SCA).

“I am very thankful to Mr Niranjan Shah (SCA Secretary) and Mr Jaydev Shah (SCA President) who have been father figures to me on and off the field and have been my constant support in my times of darkness and when I was low in my performances.”

Puducherry also acquire the services of Paras Dogra and Pankaj Singh

In addition to recruiting Sheldon Jackson, the Cricket Association of Puducherry (CAP) also retained the services of former test bowler Pankaj Singh, who missed the previous season due to injury. Paras Dogra, who is another prolific scorer in domestic cricket, has been also retained as the third guest player, Cricket Association of Pondicherry Secretary V Chandran told PTI.

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, who played in the Elite Pool for Saurashtra, will now play for Puducherry in the Plate Group. Recently, former India and Mumbai pacer, Aavishkar Salvi, was appointed as the coach of the Puducherry team.