Heinrich Klaasen, the nightmare for bowlers in T20 Cricket announces his retirement from all formats of the game
South Africa's star batsman Heinrich Klaasen has shocked the Cricketing world with a heartbreaking announcement as he has taken the hard decision of retiring from international cricket. Klaasen participated in 4 Tests, 60 ODIs and 58 T20Is, scoring nearly 3,300 runs and scoring 4 centuries in ODIs for the Proteas. He has announced this retirement decision in order to spend time with his loved ones. He is the second batsman to announce his retirement from ODI cricket today after Glenn Maxwell. He plays for 2016 winners Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the Tata IPL.
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A brilliant innings was played in the final of T20I World Cup
This 33-year-old batsman batted brilliantly in the final of the T20I World Cup last year. In this match against Team India, he scored 52 runs in 27 balls with the help of 2 fours and 5 sixes. As long as he was on the crease, South Africa was expected to win, but as soon as he was out, the whole team fell apart and Team India won the match by 6 runs and won the title.
He wrote in an Instagram post, "It is with a heavy heart that I announce my retirement from international cricket. After much contemplation, I have come to the conclusion that this is the best choice for me and my family moving forward. It was an incredibly tough decision, but it was necessary. Playing for my country has been the highest honour of my life. This has been a dream of mine since childhood, and I dedicated myself to achieving it."
"During my time with the national team, I built many wonderful friendships and created lasting relationships that I will treasure forever. Representing South Africa allowed me to connect with incredible individuals who had a profound impact on my life, and I find it hard to express my gratitude to them. My journey to donning the South African jersey was unique compared to most, and there were several coaches in my career who consistently had faith in me, for which I will always be thankful." he wrote.
He further writes, "Wearing the South African crest on my chest has been, and will always be, the greatest privilege of my career. I am excited about the opportunity to spend more time with my family, as my choice to retire enables me to do that. I will continue to be a strong supporter of the African team and want to express my gratitude to everyone who has stood by me and my teammates during my career."
A brilliant international career
The explosive wicket-keeper batsman has played only 4 Test matches for South Africa, in which he has scored 104 runs at an average of 13. Apart from this, he has played 60 ODI matches for the country. In this, he has scored a total of 2,141 runs at an average of 43.68. This includes four tons and eleven half-centuries. Klaasen has taken part in 58 T20 International matches for South Africa. In this, he has scored a thousand runs at an average of 23.25. This includes 5 fifties.