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Much like most years, 2023 was a year of upheaval and full of memories, given the quality of cricketers on display bringing out their best in high-pressure situations. However, the year also marked the end of the era for several cricketers, who called time on their careers, leaving the fraternity and fans shell-shocked.
However, it wasn't without them entertaining their fans for years and years. The aftermath of the 2023 ODI World Cup especially marked a change of guard as a handful of cricketers called it a day, majorly due to the growing dominance of the T20 leagues. It's not only the men's cricketers but also notable women cricketers who decided to retire from top-level cricket.
On that note, we take a look at the best XI of cricketers who announced their retirement in 2023:
Quinton de Kock
Proteas keeper-batter Quinton de Kock had already retired from Tests in late 2021. However, he also stepped away from ODI cricket following the 2023 World Cup, highlighting his desire to feature in as much franchise cricket as possible. Nevertheless, the swashbuckling South African opener had a tournament to remember in India.
With 594 runs in 10 innings, averaging 59.40, De Kock finished as South Africa's leading run-getter of the World Cup. He struck centuries against Australia, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh, thereby laying a solid foundation for the remaining batters.
However, the southpaw fell for a single-figure score in the semi-final contest against Australia as South Africa's dream of winning the World Cup remained unfulfilled. Nevertheless, the 30-year-old will continue to play T20Is.
David Warner
David Warner will undoubtedly go down as the most prolific all-format batter for Australia, accumulating well over 16,000 international runs. Having made his first appearance in international cricket in 2009, the dynamic left-hander has pounced on almost every bowler he faced. However, age has caught up with him.
Ahead of the World Test Championship (WTC) final in June 2023, Warner strongly indicated that the SCG Test against Pakistan in 2024 will be his swansong in red-ball cricket. Hence, he is set to play his final Test on his home ground.
On the first day of January 2024, the southpaw also announced his retirement from ODI cricket effective immediately.
Alex Hales
England opener Alex Hales announced his retirement, aged 34, on August 4, springing a surprise on the cricketing fraternity as he wished to invest himself fully in T20 franchise leagues. The right-handed batter lost nearly four productive years of his career after testing positive for a recreational drug just before the 2019 World Cup on home soil.
It was during the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia that the veteran received a recall after an injury to Jonny Bairstow. He played an integral role in England's second World T20 title, hammering 212 runs in six matches at an average of 42.40 and a strike rate of 147.22. While Hales did not set Test cricket on fire, he enjoyed prolific numbers in ODIs and T20Is.
Dane van Niekerk
Former South African women's captain Dane van Niekerk bid goodbye to the game shockingly at the age of 29. With little hope of receiving a national contract along with being embroiled in fitness issues with Cricket South Africa (CSA), van Niekerk decided to call it quits, issuing an emotional statement on March 16, 2023.
She missed most of the cricket in 2020 after sustaining a lower-back injury. The right-handed batter had her sights firmly set on the home T20 World Cup 2023 but failed the two-kilometre trial benchmark of 9:30 by an agonizing 18 seconds.
Having led South Africa to 29 wins in 50 ODIs, van Niekerk is their most successful captain in ODIs.
Meg Lanning
Meg Lanning is undeniably the most successful Australian captain across men's and women's cricket and had hardly left anything to conquer by the time she retired. Nevertheless, her retirement age was 30, announcing it on November 9, 2023.
She spearheaded the most dominant era of the Australian women's cricket team, leading them to the T20 World Cup title five times and the 50-over World Cup crown five times.
It was also under Lanning that Australia clinched the gold medal in the Commonwealth Games. She is also a reliable top-order batter, averaging over 50 in ODIs and more than 30 in Tests and T20Is.
Moeen Ali
England all-rounder Moeen Ali retired from Test cricket in September 2021 but returned to the format ahead of Ashes 2023 on captain Ben Stokes' request. While it didn't seem like a wise decision in the first Test and the veteran all-rounder couldn't contribute much with the bat, he did well with the ball. Ali was integral in orchestrating England's victory in the final Test.
On Day 5 at The Kia Oval, Ali went on to dismiss Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, and Pat Cummins as the hosts levelled the series with a 49-run win. The 36-year-old retired from Test cricket again and declared he will not reverse the decision this time.
Imad Wasim
Veteran Pakistan cricketer Imad Wasim announced his retirement via a lengthy statement on X on November 24. The spin-bowling all-rounder had last represented the national team in April 2023 and featured in 66 T20Is and 55 ODIs, having made his debut in 2015.
A member of Pakistan's successful squad of the Under-19 World Cup in 2006, Wasim went on to captain them in the next edition in 2008. The 34-year-old also travelled with the side in the 2016 T20 World Cup contested and led Pakistan in a couple of ODIs. However, he will continue to play in franchise cricket.
Dwaine Pretorius
South African all-rounder Dwaine Pretorius was by no means an accomplished cricketer but was a hugely promising limited-overs one. However, the 34-year-old announced his retirement with immediate effect from international cricket in January 2023. He retired, representing the Proteas in three Tests, 27 ODIs, and 30 T20Is after making his debut in 2016.
In his statement, Pretorius reasoned that being a free agent allows him to explore his career in the shortest format better and helps his family too.
David Willey
England left-arm seamer David Willey had announced his retirement from international cricket during the 2023 ODI World Cup.
In an interview with Sky Sports a few days later, Willey revealed that the England and Wales Cricket Board's (ECB) decision to not award him a central contract made retirement an easy decision. Having debuted in 2015, the southpaw has repeatedly been overlooked.
However, Willey had a fitting end to his international career as he was amongst the wickets against Pakistan in England's final game of the 2023 World Cup in Kolkata. He was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 10-0-56-3 as England completed an easy 93-run victory. The wicket of Agha Salman was his 100th ODI scalp.
Shabnim Ismail
Touted as the quickest woman's bowler, South Africa's Shabnim Ismail brought curtains down on her 16-year international career on May 3, 2023, with her final game in national colours coming in the Women's T20 World Cup. Cricket South Africa (CSA) did offer her a national contract, but she turned it down to spend more time with her family.
Ismail finished with 191 ODI wickets in 127 appearances at a stunning average of 19.95, making her the second-highest wicket-taker in the format. The 35-year-old's 123 T20I wickets is the fourth-highest in the format.
Ismail will continue to continue to ply her trade in franchise cricket and will represent Mumbai Indians in WPL 2024.
Stuart Broad
Veteran England pacer Stuart Broad announced his international retirement during the fifth Test of the 2023 Ashes series. Hence, when the final day beckoned, the 37-year-old had extra motivation as England were out to deny Australia a series win on English soil. Broad notably hit his final ball for a six to set the tourists 384 to win.
With Australia at 329-8 still threatening to win the game somehow, Broad removed Todd Murphy to take his 603rd Test victim, sweeping The Oval off their feet. The right-arm seamer finished his Test career with the wicket of Alex Carey as England won the Test by 49 runs, levelling the five-match series 2-2.
Broad is the second-highest wicket-taker for England in Test cricket.
