Finch announces retirement from ODIs, continues as T20I captain
Months before the Cricket World Cup 2023, Australian limited overs
skipper Aaron Finch decided to say goodbye to the one-day international
(ODI) format of the game. Finch will play his 146th and final ODI on
Sunday in Cairns against New Zealand. He will continue to lead the team
in the T20 format and will defend their title of the World Chamipons
next month.
The Australia captain will play his final game in the format against New Zealand on Sunday
"It has
been a fantastic ride with some incredible memories," Finch said. "I
have been extremely fortunate to be a part of some brilliant one-day
sides. Equally, I have been blessed by all those I have played with and
the many people behind the scenes.
"It
is time now to give a new leader the best possible opportunity to
prepare for and win the next World Cup. I thank all of those who have
helped and supported my journey to this point."
Finch’s shocking decision comes after an underwhelming run of scores in
ODIs this season. He has managed to muster just 26 runs in his last
seven innings. His original plan was to lead the Aussies to the 2023 ODI
World Cup in India. In fact, back in 2020, he termed it as his
‘ultimate goal’ after taking up the post of Australia’s ODI captain.
The retirement also came at a time when the ODI World Cup 2023 is
scheduled for next year in India. Finch was looking forward to that
World Cup but will now let someone else command the team in that format
while he tries to defend the World T20 champions title.
Australia won the T20 World Cup last year for the first time.
"It is time now to give a new leader the best possible opportunity to
prepare for and win the next World Cup. I thank all of those who have
helped and supported my journey to this point," he said.
Apart from the setbacks of the last few matches, Finch has an
outstanding record in his ODI career. He was part of the squad which won
the 2015 World Cup and has over 5000 runs with 17 centuries in the
format. Aaron made his debut against Sri Lanka in 2013 and smashed his
first century against Scotland later that year where he scored 148.
Finch was
initially named T20I captain in 2014 but on the eve of the 2016 World
Cup the job was handed to Steven Smith as the role was consolidated
across the three formats and he was left out at the start of the
tournament.
He
was named the permanent white-ball captain after the 2018
ball-tampering scandal which saw Smith banned. He led Australia to the
semi-finals of the 2019 World Cup in England before they were heavily
beaten by the hosts.
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