In the fast-moving game of cricket we have seen a number of players retiring from the game at very early age. Adding to that, the evolution of the T20 leagues across the globe is one of the prime factors that a cricketer tends to think about the retirement in his early thirties.
In some rare cases, the player who retired once comes out of retirement. And it has become a regular sight in the 21st century. A number of players who retired from the game came out of retirement to play more for their teams. Here, we will talk about such instances when players came out of retirement to play the game.
7 Players who came out of retirement to player cricket
1. Shahid Afridi
Former Pakistani captain Shahid Afridi is a well-known name in this game. He was probably the best spin all-rounder that the game has seen. Notably, Afridi retired from the game not once but five times. On four occasions, he came out of retirement. But his fifth and last retirement came in February 2017, and he did it permanently. He played 27 Tests, 398 ODIs, and 99 T20Is, scoring 1716, 8064, and 1416 runs with 48, 395, and 98 wickets, respectively.
2. Dwayne Bravo
Another well-known name who came out of retirement if former West Indian superstar Dwyane Bravo. The all-rounder announced his retirement in 2018 but came out of it in 2020 and featured in a T20I series against Ireland. But then, on November 6, 2021, he finally hung up his boots from international cricket. However, he is still active and plays in various T20 leagues around the world.
3. Kevin Pietersen
Former English superstar Kevin Pietersen, who went on to lead his country, also features in this list. Pietersen was one of the best batters to play for England across formats and won them numerous games. But in 2011, he announced his retirement because of his clashes with the ECB and coach Peter Moores. But just after one month, he came out of retirement, mentioning that he want to represent England in all three formats. Finally, in 2018, he announced his retirement.
4. Carl Hooper
Former West Indian all-rounder Carl Hooper is one of the players who came out of his retirement and played the game. The all-rounder was a key member of the team across formats in the 1990s. He announced his retirement after the 1999 ODI World Cup. But made a u-turn in 2021 and played for another two years. He was the first player in international cricket with 5000 runs, 100 wickets, and 100 catches. Cooper retired in 2003 finally.
5. Imran Khan
One of the biggest names that Pakistan has ever produced in the game of cricket, Imran Khan, also made a U-turn after taking international retirement. He led Pakistan to their only ODI World title in 1992. But do you know? His first retirement came in 1987. But then he came out of retirement, and it was a splendid decision that helped Pakistan win the 1992 ODI World Cup.
6. Ambati Rayudu
Former Indian star Ambati Rayudu also came out of retirement. Rayudu was an important member of the team between 2016 and 2019. But he was not included in India’s squad for the 2019 ODI World Cup. As a result, he decided to announce his retirement. But he made a sudden U-turn and changed his decision. However, he finally announced his retirement after CSK won their fifth IPL title in 2023. Rayudu played 55 ODIs and 6 T20Is and scored 1694 and 42 runs.
7. Moeen Ali
Veteran English all-rounder Moeen Ali is the latest player to join this unusual list. Notably, Ali announced his retirement from Test cricket in September 2021 to manage his workload in white-ball cricket. But on June 7, 2023 he announced that he would be coming out of his retirement to play the English test this summer. So far, he has played 64 Tests and scored 2914 runs with 195 wickets. He took this decision after English spinner Jack Leach was ruled out of the Ashes 2023 due to injury.
