South Africa
Legendary South Africa fast bowler Shabnim Ismail announced her retirement from international cricket with immediate effect.
Shabnim said in an interview with Quint said that her parents are from India. She said that her dad is from Surat, but is not aware of the finer details. She loves coming to India.
Ismail cited “wanting to spend more time with my family” as one of the reasons to move on from international cricket and play T20 domestic cricket around the world.
“After 16 years proudly representing my country, I have come to the difficult decision to retire from international cricket and move on to the next chapter of my life,” Ismail said in her statement.
“As any athlete knows, training and competing at your best requires much sacrifice and dedication, and I now find myself wanting to spend more time with my family, particularly my siblings and parents as they get older.
Ismail’s final game for South Africa came in the final of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup against Australia. The speedster picked up eight wickets at an average of 16.12 in South Africa’s maiden appearance in the final of a World Cup event.
“As I look back on my international career, I am so grateful for all the opportunities and experiences I have had,” Ismail said.
“I have loved being able to compete at the highest level and I am so proud of being able to be part of a wonderful group of players who have led the way for women in cricket. The memories I have will stay with me forever.”
Ismail, 34, played 127 ODIs, 113 T20Is and a solitary Test for South Africa in an international career spanning 16 years.
Hailed as the fastest bowler in the women’s game, the South African collected 317 international wickets. Ismail also grabbed the joint-most Women’s ODI wickets taken in a single calendar year, taking 37 wickets in 2022. This included 14 wickets in the 2022 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup in New Zealand.
