Sehwag considering Delhi exit

Although the next Indian domestic season is still a few months away, a high-profile transfer is in the pipeline. ESPNcricinfo has learnt that Virender Sehwag is seriously considering offers from a a couple of state associations to bid farewell to Delhi and play as a professional in the upcoming season.

While Sehwag wasn't available for comment, it is understood that he believes that with himself, Gautam Gambhir, Mithun Manhas and Rajat Bhatia in the Delhi line-up, opportunities for younger players are increasingly being limited and it is best if he makes way at this stage in his career.

After an underwhelming 2013-14 Ranji Trophy season, Sehwag found some form last season, scoring 568 runs an average of 51.63 in eight matches, including two centuries. He finished only a run behind captain Gambhir, who was the highest run-getter for Delhi. In the 50-over Vijay Hazare Trophy though, Sehwag's returns were less impressive, with 131 runs at 21.83 in six outings.

Sehwag has had a fractious relationship with the Delhi and Districts Cricket Association (DDCA) and even threatened to walk out in 2009, alleging nepotism and corruption in the organisation. While that revolt fizzled out, the association continues to make headlines for the wrong reasons. A recent report in the Hindu suggested that ahead of the new domestic season, trouble was brewing again with some senior players contemplating quitting.

Speaking on condition of anonymity to ESPNcricinfo, one of the players admitted that while things are "worse than ever before" at the DDCA and "particularly bad at the Under-16 & U-19 levels", there was unlikely to be an exodus from the team just yet. Unpaid match fees from the last season is another festering issue though one senior player said the sum was "too meagre" for him to take an extreme step such as walking out of the side altogether.

Sehwag, however, is said to be unconcerned about the goings-on in the association and is focusing entirely on planning the home stretch of his playing career. In an interview in December last year, he said he was keen to play for "another two-three years." If he does wind down his time in the game at another state it will end a 17-year association that began with his first-class debut in the 1997-98 season. He went on to become the most successful batsman from Delhi to represent India, playing 104 Tests, 251 ODIs & 19 T20Is and scoring more than 17,000 international runs.