BANGALORE, India, March 9 (UPI) -- Rahul Dravid, India's star batsman known as "The Wall," announced his retirement from international cricket Friday, saying, "I feel it is time to move on."
Dravid, 39, earned 13,288 runs, in Tests (five-day games), second to fellow Indian Sachin Tendulkar in all-time scoring.
"It is 16 years since I played my first Test match for India and today I feel it is an time to move on," Dravid told a news conference in his hometown of Bangalore. "Once 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."
Karnataka Coach Karthik Jeshwanth said: "I still feel that Rahul has at least a couple of more seasons in him but he must have had strong reasons to retire. If at all there is a role model and a complete package, then it is Rahul."
During his career which included 164 Tests, Dravid was referred to as the "The Wall" for his ability to confront any bowler and play masterful strokes. He has a record of 36 centuries, the game's fourth highest after Tendulkar's 51 and South Africa' Jaques Kallis and Australia's Ricky Ponting with 41 each.
A brilliant fielder as well, Dravid also took 210 catches, the highest for a non-wicketkeeper, the Times of India reported.
Dravid retired from one-day cricket in September, having scored 10,889 runs in 344 internationals, the BBC reported.
Dravid's announcement came only days after the Indian cricket team returned from a disappointing 0-4 tour of Australia.
He became the first of the three older greats of Indian cricket to retire. The others are Tendulkar and V.V.S. Laxman.
