Nicholas Pooran, a swashbuckling white-ball cricketer from the West Indies, announced his shock retirement from international cricket on Monday at the age of 29.

Pooran, a former West Indies white-ball captain and holder of the record for the most T20I runs and appearances for the Caribbean team, took to social media to announce his retirement.

“Wearing that maroon, standing for the anthem, and giving everything I had each time I stepped on the field... it's hard to put into words what that truly means to me,” Pooran wrote. “To have led the team as captain is a privilege I will always hold close to my heart.”

His international career was marked with highs, including becoming the all-time leading scorer for the West Indies in T20Is, as well as lows, including suspension in 2019 for ball-tampering against Afghanistan.

Pooran, however, recovered from that setback and led the West Indies to a 4-1 series victory over Australia in 2021. In 2022, he was appointed as the permanent white-ball captain of the West Indies. But he stepped down after the West Indies were eliminated in the first round.

In 106 T20Is, Pooran scored 2,275 runs at a strike rate that made him a constant threat to the opposition bowlers. He also featured in 61 ODIs, scoring 1983 runs at an average of 39.66. He also smashed three centuries and representing the West Indies in the 2019 World Cup.

Cricket West Indies hailed him as a “game-changer” and thanked him for his “outstanding contributions” to the game and the team.

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