From de Villiers to Raina: 5 international players who retired early

Every cricketer dreams of donning the national jersey one day. Since picking up the bat or ball in early days of their cricketing career, they aspire to break into the national squad and deliver match-winning performances for their country.

However, staying on the biggest stage requires immense hard work and consistency. And with the injuries coming into the picture, a player’s illustrious career is always in danger because of career-ending injuries. There have been many instances when a player has unexpectedly hung up his boots. Be it woeful form, injury-plagued career or personal reasons, several players have stunned the cricketing fraternity by their sudden retirement.

Here are a few top players:

1. AB de Villiers (South Africa)

There’s no doubt about the fact over AB de Villiers’ potential and class in any format of the game. However, the South African stalwart pulled curtains on his illustrious career in May 2018. His decision shocked the entire cricket fraternity at that point. Since breaking into the South Africa squad in 2004, the right-hander had delivered many match-winning performances at the biggest stage. He played 114 Test matches, 228 ODIs and 78 T20Is, scoring over 19,000 international runs. Recently, there were many speculations about him making an international return for the T20 World Cup. However, amid the pandemic, nothing looks certain at the moment.

2. Tatenda Taibu

An important name in Zimbabwe’s cricket journey, Tatenda Taibu became the youngest Test captain in the history of Test cricket when he was appointed the skipper at the age of 21. However, his journey came to an end at a young age of 29. He announced his retirement saying that he wanted to focus on working for the church and his decision stunned every cricket fan. Taibu played 28 Tests and 150 One-day international matches for Zimbabwe. In his 11-year journey with Zimbabwe, he became the second-most successful wicket-keeper batsman after Andy Flower. Many batsmen peak at 29 and Taibu’s decision to leave the sport at that age surely served as a shock to several fans.

3. Brendon McCullum

As AB de Villiers, Brendon McCullum was also a vital part of New Zealand Cricket. The Kiwi stalwart announced his international retirement at the age of 34 but many felt that he could’ve played for many more years. The right-hander possessed exemplary fitness and batting skills while being 34, giving world-class youngsters a run for their money. McCullum’s antics in T20 domestic leagues is not a secret and many believed that he could’ve easily carried on for many more years. McCullum, who broke into the national side in 2002, played 101 Test matches, 260 ODIs and 71 T20Is for the Kiwis. He scored 6453 runs in Tests, 6083 in ODIs and 2140 in T20Is during the course of his illustrious career. His last international appearance turned out to be against Australia in February 2016.

4. Suresh Raina

MS Dhoni shocked the cricket fraternity by announcing his international retirement on 15th August 2020. Many believed that his being 39 was the reason behind his departure. But fans were left stunned after 33-year-old Suresh Raina also announced his retirement after Dhoni. The left-hander and CSK skipper was sidelined from the national squad for the past couple of years. However, many still believed that he possessed the ability to pave his way back into the Indian side. Nonetheless, Raina bid adieu to international cricket after representing India for more than a decade. He made his ODI debut against Sri Lanka in 2005 and eventually represented India in 18 Tests, 226 ODIs and 78 T20Is. Along with his batting skills, Raina was also regarded as a world-class fielder in international cricket.

5. Shane Watson

Australia’s Shane Watson is known as one of the best all-rounders to have braced the game. Along with his power hitting, Watson was also an essential part of any side’s bowling lineup. Hitting runs at a brisk rate and scalping wickets was his forte. However, injuries hampered his career and the Australian eventually announced his international retirement in 2019 at the age of 34. Watson was associated with the Australian side since breaking into the ODI squad in 2002. He played 59 Test matches for Australia in which he scored 3731 runs and scalped 75 wickets. In the limited-overs formats, he gathered 5757 runs in 190 ODIs and 1462 runs in 58 T20Is. He also has 168 ODI wickets and 58 T20I wickets to his name. Considering his performances in T20 leagues across the globe, many felt that Watson would have donned the Australian jersey for a couple of more years.