Every year, we witness plenty of cricketers announce retirement from the game. Especially in the year of the ODI World Cup, we see more names in this category. 2023 was no different. While there were a few surprise retirements, a few decisions were on the expected lines. On that note, here, we take a look at the playing XI of cricketers who retired in 2023.
Note: We have not added cricketers who announced retirement in 2023 but will play in 2024 (eg. Manoj Tiwary, Dean Elgar)
Openers: M Vijay and Alex Hales
M Vijay and Alex Hales will open the batting for this playing XI of cricketers who retired in 2023. Vijay had been out of the mainstream game for a while. Hence, this decision was coming. After retirement, he is playing in some T20 leagues. Alex Hales, on the other hand, took a shocking decision. He had just helped England win the 2022 T20 World Cup last year. Hence, it was a big surprise.
Middle-Order: Aaron Finch (C), Hashim Amla, Ambati Rayudu (WK) and Gyanendra Malla
Aaron Finch was still a part of some of the local leagues. However, he retired from all forms of the game. Hashim Amla was playing in the County. He announced his decision to retire, as well.
Ambati Rayudu had already made his decision clear. After retirement, he is busy in leagues such as the T10 League. He will keep wickets for this side. Gyanendra Malla is a popular cricketer in Nepal. The former skipper quit all forms of the game.
All-Rounders: Daniel Christian, David Willey, Joginder Sharma and Dwaine Pretorius
All-rounders find tremendous demand in various parts of the globe. Hence, there were some shocking decisions in this regard. David Willey and Dwaine Pretorius still had some years left in them. However, they retired from the game this year.
Joginder Sharma was away from competitive cricket for a long time. He formalized his decision this year. Dan Christian also announced his retirement in 2023.
Bowlers: Stuart Broad
No popular spinner is a part of this playing XI of cricketers who retired in 2023. One of the biggest names to retire this year is Stuart Broad. A legend of the game, he announced his decision midway through the Ashes. He will go down as one of the best pacers that the game has witnessed.
