Australia captain Alyssa Healy on Tuesday announced that she will draw the curtains on her glittering 16-year international career after the home series against India. The wicketkeeper-batter will lead Australia in three ODIs, three T20Is and a one-off Test before signing off in front of the home crowd.
Healy’s announcement drew widespread reactions from the cricket community as well as Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who praised her remarkable contributions to the sport and said she has the potential to become an excellent commentator.
“Alyssa Healy is a legend. She has had such an incredible career playing for Australia and leading Australia. The rise of women’s cricket, which has in parallel seen a rise in other women’s sports, is a great thing. It is a fantastic team that she has led. She is not only a great player, but I’m sure she will also continue to evolve, as I think she’s a great cricket commentator,” Albanese said in a post shared on X.
Mitchell Starc, Australia’s ace pacer and Healy’s partner, posted a photo of the cricketer celebrating her century against England on Instagram with an orange heart as the caption. He also shared a picture on his Instagram story, writing, “Proud of ya.”
Cricket Australia posted a video in which former Australia skipper Meg Lanning and Healy’s current teammates Phoebe Litchfield and her deputy, Tahlia McGrath, commended her intent and leadership skills as captain.
Australia’s leading all-rounder Ellyse Perry, who has closely witnessed Healy’s career, also responded to her captain’s retirement. She shared Cricket Australia’s post praising Healy’s impact on her Instagram story, writing “irreplaceable” alongside it.
“It’s with mixed emotions that the upcoming India series will be my last for Australia,” Healy said while announcing her retirement. “I’m still passionate about playing for Australia, but I’ve somewhat lost that competitive edge that’s kept me driven since the start, so the time feels right to call it a day.”
“Knowing I won’t be going to the T20 World Cup this year and the limited preparation time the team has, I won’t be part of the T20Is against India, but I’m excited to have the opportunity to finish my career and captain the ODI and Test sides at home against India, one of the biggest series on the calendar for us,” she added.
Healy has scored 489 runs in 10 Tests. She has accumulated 3,563 runs across 123 ODIs and 3,054 runs in 162 T20Is. In December 2023, she was appointed Australia’s full-time captain, taking over from Meg Lanning.
–IANS
