SA’s Trisha Chetty announces retirement from all formats of cricket

The South African wicket keeper-batter Trisha Chetty announced her retirement from professional cricket on Friday. The decision was forced by a recurring back problem, ending a 21-year domestic and international cricket career.

Chetty stated that her back problem has plagued her for the past five years and that she has tried everything to persevere, but her body told her that it is time to hang up her boots.

The 34-year-old scored close to 4000 runs in international cricket, playing in 134 ODIs, 82 T20Is, and two Tests

Chetty, who is from Durban, took 133 wickets and a world record-equalling 51 stumpings behind the stumps (tied with England’s Sarah Taylor and India’s Anju Jain). Behind the stumps, Chetty scored an unprecedented 184 dismissals in the One-Day format, 46 scalps more than her closest competitor. After making her T201 debut in August 2007, Chetty dismissed 70 batters in the shorter format, including 42 catches and 28 stumpings.

The quiet right-handed batter scored 2703 runs in one-day internationals, including 16 half-centuries and a top score of 95 against Ireland in 2016. In the meantime, Chetty scored 1 117 runs in T20 format at an 88.09 strike rate, scoring five fifties.

She became only the second player in Women’s ODI cricket to score a half-century and make five dismissals in a match when she scored 53 against Sri Lanka in 2013 and took four catches and a stumping. This was one of Chetty’s remarkable accomplishments in her career.

During her time as the number one keeper for South Africa, Chetty featured in four 50-over World Cups (2009, 2013, 2017 and 2022) as well as everything except one (2018-harmed) ICC Womens’ T20 Cricket World Cup somewhere in the range of 2009 and 2020, assuming a vital part with the gloves to assist the Proteas with accomplishing four semi-final appearances across the two formats.

“I can still remember the incredible feeling I had back in 2007 as I walked over the boundary rope, dressed in green and gold for the first time. For the past 16 years, it has been a privilege to represent my country and play for the Proteas, and that feeling has never gone away – each time I pulled on my South African kit I felt honored to be doing so,”

Chetty said in a statement released by CSA on Friday (March 17).

“But now, due to a recurring back injury for the past 5 years, the time has come for me to hang up my boots and let the gloves catch dust. I have tried everything to keep playing and have pushed as hard as I can but my body is signalling that it has no more to give and it is time to retire from all forms of cricket.”

she added.

She also expressed her disbelief that her career had ended and that this was not really an easy option.

“This was not an easy decision for me, and even now, I can’t quite believe my career is over. However, my cricket career has been a life-changing experience and I look back with no regrets and a full heart…Cricket has taught me about life, being disciplined, what it means to be professional and how to be a team player. For this, I will always be grateful. And I choose to continue to be grateful for cricket as I retire and transition into the next chapter of my life,”

she said.