By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Proteas wicket-keeper batsman Heinrich Klaasen retires from international cricket, draws curtains to a seven-year career.
Klaasen, 33, who made his debut in 2018, took to social media to announce his retirement.
“It is a sad day for me as I announce that I have decided to step away from international cricket,” Klaasen said in a statement released on Monday.
“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.
“I look forward to spending more time with my family as this decision will allow me to do so.”
Klaasen averaged 43.69, with four centuries and 11 fifties across his 60 ODI caps, and scored exactly 1,000 runs in 58 T20Is at a strike rate of 141.84. He also played four Tests for his country.
Klaasen is likely to continue playing T20 franchise cricket, having had successful stints in the Indian Premier League, the Caribbean Premier League, The Hundred and South Africa’s own domestic T20 league, the SA20.
Enoch Nkwe, South Africa’s director of national teams and high performance, said he understood the reasons for Klaasen’s decision.
“He has been transparent with Cricket South Africa throughout the past few months, and we fully respect his decision to retire from international cricket,” Nkwe said. “We wish him continued success in the next chapter of his journey.”
Klaasen’s decision was also inevitable given Shukri Conrad’s plans for the national side. Announced as South Africa’s white-ball coach last month, Conrad made it clear that playing for South Africa would be the priority over T20 leagues in his tenure.
South Africa have a busy schedule coming up across formats, including several white-ball commitments through July, August and September. Those series clash with a number of leagues, including Major League Cricket (MLC), the Hundred and the Caribbean Premier League (CPL).