Noor Ali Zadran bids farewell to international cricket

NEW DELHI: Veteran Afghanistan batter Noor Ali Zadran has announced his retirement from international cricket.

Noor Ali's journey in international cricket began in 2009, when he donned the Afghanistan jersey for the first time, embarking on a remarkable odyssey that would see him represent Afghanistan across all formats of the game. With the bat, he amassed 1216 runs in ODIs, 597 runs in T20Is, and two Test appearances.

Both his Tests came in a one-month span - he played Sri Lanka in Colombo in early February before the game against Ireland in Abu Dhabi later in the month; he scored 117 runs across four innings. Noor Ali's retirement comes on the heels of his final appearance for Afghanistan in a one-off Test against Ireland earlier this month, which ended in a defeat for his team.

From his explosive debut against Scotland in Benoni, where he announced his arrival with a scintillating 45 off just 28 balls in an 89-run win for his team. Noor's first T20I, in February 2010, was Afghanistan's second game in the format.

One of the defining moments of Noor Ali's career came during Afghanistan's maiden World Cup appearance in 2010, where he showcased his mettle by smashing a memorable half-century against India. His instrumental role in Afghanistan's triumph over Zimbabwe in the T20 World Cup in 2016 further solidified his stature as a talismanic figure in Afghan cricket.

After playing for Afghans in the 2019 ODI World Cup, he was called up to the Afghanistan squad for the T20Is at the Asian Games in October 2023. He scored 39 and 51 runs in the Asian Games against Pakistan and Sri Lanka, respectively. Afghanistan defeated both teams en route to the championship match against India; however, due to inclement weather, the match ended in a draw, with India winning the gold medal as the team with the superior ranking.