Sunil Narine Announces Retirement From International Cricket

St’ Johns [Antigua]: West Indies all-rounder Sunil Narine announced his retirement from international cricket on Sunday.

The West Indies all-rounder, who had an illustrious eight-year career representing the Windies, last played for Men in Maroon in August 2019 in a T20I match.

“I appreciate it has been over four years since I last played for West Indies, but today I am announcing my retirement from international cricket,” Narine wrote on Instagram, as quoted by ESPNCricinfo.

“Publicly, I am a man of few words, but privately, there are a few people who have given me unwavering support throughout my career and helped me realise my dream of representing West Indies and to you I express my deepest gratitude,” he added.

Narine shot into the limelight with his performances for Trinidad and Tobago in the now-defunct Champions League T20I, before making his debut in December 2011. He played for WI in 122 international games, which included six Tests, 65 ODIs and 51 T20Is. He picked up 165 wickets in his career.

Narine helped West Indies lift their first ICC T20 World Cup in 2012 and played in the 2014 edition as well.

Since 2012, Narine has been a regular part of Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Kolkata Knight Riders, taking 163 wickets in 162 matches and scoring 1,046 runs with four fifties. He also played a lot of T20 leagues worldwide, like the International League T20 (Abu Dhabi), Trinbago Knight Riders in the Caribbean Premier League and Los Angeles in Major League Cricket. He was also of the Hundred men’s competition with Oval Invincibles and also featured in the Big Bash League, Pakistan Super League and Bangladesh Premier League.

In 2014, Narine was reported for a suspect action following which he withdrew from the 2015 ODI World Cup and it played a part in his sporadic international appearances for years to come.

He also thanked his father for his support.

“[My father] is ever present with me when I take to the field and I am indebted to his support and love, which carried me through the times I questioned whether the pursuit of my dreams was really worth it,” he wrote. “I love representing Trinidad & Tobago, the country of my birth, and to add another title by winning the Super50 Cup will be the perfect send-off,” he concluded.