Ashish Nehra (1999-2017): The journey in pictures

Nehra earned a recall in 2009

The third-highest wicket-taker for Delhi Daredevils in IPL 2009, Nehra forced his way back into the national side, fully utilising the spot left by an injured Zaheer Khan. On his recall, he picked up six wickets in the series against West Indies, and arrived just in time to be in the reckoning for the 2009 Champions Trophy.

From 2009 to 2011, Nehra became a crucial part of the bowling attack

Over the next year and a half, Nehra got an extended run in the Indian team, right up to the 2011 World Cup. His experience was invaluable, helping the side form a perfect mix with the youngsters in their quest for the ultimate title. 2009 was his most prolific year, fetching him 31 wickets from 21 games in ODIs.

A four-pronged pace attack meant that competition was tight for Nehra

With the team management chopping and changing, Nehra got to feature in just three games, but made sure that he created an impact. Against Pakistan, his spell of 2-33 in the semi-finals stifled the chase, drying out the run-flow to make sure that India's World Cup record against their arch-rivals remained clean.

Nehra played his part in the WC clash against Pakistan

A finger injury while fielding against Pakistan quashed his dreams of playing a World Cup game again, and Nehra had to sit out while his teammates chased glory. After that, his path to making a return became extremely difficult: another generation of pacers were staking their claim: Umesh Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Varun Aaron and R Vinay Kumar formed more than a handful, brushing Zaheer Khan and Nehra out of contention.

Post the finger injury, Nehra was out of the Indian team for four years

While Zaheer retired in 2015, Nehra stuck around, plying his trade in the IPL in the hopes of a recall.