Amidst the discuss round T20 taking precendence over Take a look at cricket in South Africa, swashbuckling batter Heinrich Klaasen has introduced his retirement from the longest format of the sport.
Klaasen, who was among the many prime run getters for South Africa in final yr’s ODI World Cup, wasn’t an everyday within the purple ball setup.
“After a couple of sleepless nights questioning if I’m making the fitting resolution, I’ve determined to retire from red-ball cricket. It’s a tough resolution that I’ve made as a result of it’s by far my favorite format of the sport,” he mentioned in a press release. “The battles that I confronted on and off the sphere have made me the cricketer I’m right now. It has been a terrific journey and I’m glad I might have represented my nation. My saggy Take a look at cap is probably the most valuable cap I’ve ever been handed.”
Having made his debut in 2019, the 32-year-old solely had 4 Take a look at matches beneath his belt. It was solely final February although that the Proteas Take a look at coach Shukri Conrad had made identified that as a keeper batter, he most well-liked having Klaasen within the squad as a substitute of Paul Verreynne, concerning the previous as a ‘higher batter’. Nonetheless, on the tour of the West Indies, Klaasen notched up a mere 56 runs from 4 innings.
Having misplaced to India in Cape City final week, South Africa are slated to play seven extra Take a look at matches in 2024 – three of that are in opposition to New Zealand subsequent month.
The Proteas squad announcement for the three-match sequence beginning February 4 has been the discuss of the cricket fraternity, with the guests having named as many as seven debutants of their squad whereas most of their red-ball A-listers function within the upcoming SA20 League.