Four-time Indian Premier League (IPL) champions on Sunday wished its Director of Cricket Operations and former India cricketer Zaheer Khan as the 41-year-old has been chosen for the prestigious Padma Shri award.

"2011 World Cup winner and our Director of Cricket Operations, Zaheer Khan, has been conferred with the Padma Shri -- one of the highest civilian awards in the country," the franchise tweeted.

Zaheer (311 wickets) was one of the India's finest pacers and was only behind the legendary Kapil Dev (434 wickets) in terms of wicket-takers among the Indian fast bowlers in the Tests. Zaheer was a member of the team which won the World Cup in 2011.

Zaheer had announced his retirement from international and first-class cricket on October 15, 2015 in a tweet saying: "I bid adieu to my career in international cricket."