Heinrich Klaasen announces sudden retirement from international cricket

South African wicketkeeper-batter Heinrich Klaasen has announced his sudden retirement from international cricket to bring curtains to his seven-year career with the South African International team.

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The 33-year-old keeper-batter announced his ultimate decision on Monday, June 2 that he wouldn’t take part in any further white-ball formats. Notably, he announced his red-ball retirement back in 2024.

It’s important to note that Klaasen made his One-Day International (ODI) and T20 International (T20I) debuts in the summer of 2018 and emerged as one of the most explosive batters in the middle-order for his national team.

He has played 60 ODIs and accumulated over 2000 runs at an average of just under 44 in the middle order. Moreover, Klaasen also represented South Africa in 58 T20Is, striking at a rate of 141.84. 

“It is a sad day for me as I announce that I have decided to step away from international cricket. It took me a long time to decide what’s best for me and my family for the future. It was truly a very difficult decision but also one that I have absolute peace with,” he wrote on his Instagram handle.

“From the first day, it was the biggest privilege representing my country and it was everything that I have worked for and dreamed about as a young boy,” he added.

“I have made great friendships and relationships that I will treasure for life. Playing for the Proteas gave me the opportunity to meet great people that changed my life, and to those people I can’t say thank you enough. My road to wearing the Proteas shirt was different than most and there were certain coaches in my career that kept believing in me - to them I will always be grateful,” he continued.

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“To have played with the Proteas badge on my chest was and will always be the biggest honour in my career. I look forward to spending more time with my family as this decision will allow me to do so,” he stated.

“I will always be a big Proteas supporter and would like to thank everyone that supported me and my teammates during my career,” he concluded.

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