All-rounder Todd Astle joins the list of players such as Mohd. Aamir and Ambati Rayudu, by deciding to quit Test cricket to focus on the limited-overs cricket.
As a result, Astle has made himself unavailable from New Zealand A’s first-class match against India A. The 33-year old bowling all-rounder made his Test debut in 2012 for New Zealand playing against Sri Lanka in Colombo. He had scored 35 runs in the second innings with one wicket in the second innings of that match.
Overall, he played 5 tests across 8 years by picking up 7 wickets at an avg of 52 and scoring 98 runs at an avg of 19.40. His last match was against Australia in Sydney earlier this month.
Astle said that he was finding it difficult to keep up with the demanding preparation that is a part of Test cricket.
“Playing Test cricket was always the dream and I’m so honored to have represented my country and province in the longest form of the game,” he said, as per the stuff.co.nz site, “Red-ball cricket is the pinnacle, but also requires a huge amount of time and effort.
“As I’ve got to the back end of my career I’ve found it harder to maintain the level of commitment required to be fully invested in this version of the game.
“I’m really proud of what I’ve been able to achieve with Canterbury and the Black Caps. To have the opportunity to play a Test against Australia at the SCG was an experience I’ll always cherish,” added Astle, who also played nine ODIs and three T20Is for New Zealand.
“I’m excited to now focus all my energy into the white-ball formats, as well as give more time to my young family and new business.”
Todd Astle had first played for New Zealand in the 2006 Under-19 Cricket World Cup as an opening batsman. But later as he played first-class cricket for Canterbury, he developed himself into a bowling all-rounder. He was known for his right-arm leg-spin bowling and occasional googlies. He struggled to be a regular in the New Zealand’s national team on account of injuries and the competition from other spinners.
However, he was an important player for his first-class cricket team Canterbury. He played 119 first-class matches and took 334 wickets with 13 five-wicket hauls. He also scored 4385 first-class runs at an average of 25.86.
Astle became the first bowler for his state side, Canterbury, to take 300 wickets. He achieved this record in October 2019 against Wellington in a Plunkett Shield Match.
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