De Grandhomme quits international cricket to focus on T20

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand allrounder Colin de Grandhomme retired from international cricket on Wednesday after being surprisingly recruited to play for the Adelaide Strikers in Australia’s Big Bash Twenty20 league.

De Grandhomme was under contract to New Zealand Cricket which would have made him ineligible to play in the Australian domestic tournament.

But after meeting with New Zealand officials, de Grandhomme announced he would retire from all international cricket. The Zimbabwe-born allrounder played 29 tests, 45 one-day internationals and 41 Twenty20 matches for New Zealand.

De Grandhomme made his ODI and T20 debuts in 2021 and his test debut against Pakistan at Christchurch in 2016, taking a career-best 6-41 in the first innings of his first test.

He went on to take take 49 wickets and score two centuries and eight centuries in tests, 30 wickets and four half centuries in one-day internationals and 12 wickets in T20s.

De Grandhomme hasn’t played for New Zealand since injuring his heel during the first test against England at Lord’s in June.

“I accept I am not getting any younger and that the training is getting harder, particularly with the injuries,” the 36-year-old de Grandhomme said. “I also have a growing family and am trying to understand what my future looks like post-cricket. All of this has been on my mind over the past few weeks.”

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