NEW DELHI: England batsman Sam Billings said he has learned a lot from spending time with former Australian all-rounder Shane Watson.
Watson and Billings both played for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the 11th edition of Indian Premier League in 2018. CSK had defeated Sunrisers Hyderabad by eight wickets to clinch the title.
Watson on Tuesday announced retirement from all forms of cricket, ending a 20-year long illustrious career, during which he was one of the world's premier white-ball all-rounders.
Billing, who scored 108 runs in the 11th edition of the tournament, congratulated Watson on an "amazing career" and said he was very lucky to have a teammate like an all-rounder.
"Huge congrats on an amazing career to a phenomenal cricketer & even better bloke! Very lucky to have had you as a teammate on various occasions; the impact and learnings I have benefited from spending time with you have been immense. Enjoy retirement @ShaneRWatson33 #GiddyUppp," Billings tweeted.
The Australian all-rounder had already ended his international career in March 2016 and had only been playing in overseas T20 leagues.
Watson said that the last three years in the IPL with CSK have been of the highlights of his career.
"I'm just so grateful, the last three years have been one of the highlights of my career," said Watson in a video posted on CSK's Twitter.
In his IPL stint, Watson has lifted two titles in 2008 (RR) and 2018 (CSK) and two players of the tournament awards (2008 and 2013).
The 39-year-old played 145 games for three teams in the competition, scoring 3874 runs at a strike-rate of 137.91. He hit four centuries and also claimed a hat-trick amongst his 92 IPL wickets.
CSK failed to qualify for the play-off for the first time in the 11 seasons they have competed in. Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led side finished with 12 points in 14 games.