Australian wicketkeeper-batter Matthew Wade has announced his retirement from international cricket, bringing an end to a 13-year career.
Matthew Wade becomes wicketkeeping and fielding coach post retirement
While he will continue to play domestic and franchise cricket, Wade will also transition into a coaching role, taking on the position of Australia’s wicketkeeping and fielding coach. His first coaching assignment will be the upcoming T20I series against Pakistan.
Wade’s career was marked by resilience and adaptability. He often found himself competing for a spot in the Australian team across all formats, but he eventually cemented his place as a key player in the T20I side. His crucial contributions to Australia’s 2021 T20 World Cup triumph, particularly his match-winning performance against Pakistan in the semi-final, highlighted his ability to perform under pressure.
Despite of his decent performances on the India tour and the 2024 T20 World Cup 2024, the selectors made their intentions clear by not picking Wade for the recent tour of the UK. The 36-year-old represented Australia in 36 Tests, 97 ODIs and 92 T20Is, scoring 1613, 1867 and 1202 runs respectively.
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“I want to thank all of my Australian team mates, staff and coaches”: Wade
Speaking of his retirement, Wade said, “I was fully aware my international days were most likely over at the end of the last T20 World Cup. My international retirement and coaching has been a constant conversation with George [Bailey] and Andrew [McDonald] over the past six months.
“Coaching has been on my radar over the last few years and thankfully some great opportunities have come my way, for which I am very grateful and excited.
“I will continue to play BBL and the odd franchise league over the summer months but around those commitments as a player I am investing heavily in my coaching.
“As my international career closes, I want to thank all of my Australian team mates, staff and coaches. I enjoyed the ride as challenging as it can be at international level. Without good people around me I would have never got as much out of myself as I did.”
“I also thank my family, mum, dad and sisters for the countless hours they put in over the years getting me to games and training.
“Lastly to Julia and the kids. I can’t thank them enough for the sacrifices they have made for me to continue to pursue my dreams. No words can explain how grateful I am to them, none of this would have happened without their support.”