Saturday 20 / April / 2024
Edinburgh: Scotland's Kyle Coetzer has announced his retirement from international cricket on Wednesday after enjoying a glorious career.
Having represented Scotland in 159 matches across formats, Coetzer accumulated 4,687 runs which included five centuries and 27 fifties. One of those three-figure scores came at the Men's Cricket World Cup against Bangladesh in 2015, which is Scotland's first and only century at the marquee event.
The 38-year-old captained 86 of his 159 games, leading Scotland to victory 46 times. He was also at the helm of Scotland in one of the greatest moments in their cricketing history when they qualified for the Super 12s of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 in Oman.
The Coetzer-led side, in fact, did it in convincing fashion in Muscat as it topped Group B undefeated, with wins over Bangladesh, Papua New Guinea and hosts Oman in October 2021.
He retires from international cricket on a high, after lifting the Cricket World Cup League 2 trophy in Nepal last month.
As an individual cricketer, one of the biggest moments of his career was being crowned the ICC Men's Cricketer of the Decade.
Having hung his boots, Coetzer is set to take up the role of Assistant Coach with the Northern Diamonds, one of the eight women’s regional ECB hubs.
Commenting on his retirement, Coetzer said: “I don’t ever think there’s a perfect time for a decision like this, but I’ve been considering my options for some time, and an opportunity came up which was too good to turn down.
“The balance that the Scotland team needs at this time was outweighed by the opportunity for me to move into coaching, and I’m extremely excited about the chance to work with such a high-profile team. The chance to move straight into the performance game isn’t always there, and I’m fortunate that this opportunity opened up for me at this moment and I can take it on.
“The Northern Diamonds are one of the top sides in the country; they won the Rachael Heyhoe-Flint Trophy at Lord’s last season, and they’ve been performing well in the last couple of years. To be involved with coaching a performance team at that level is really exciting.”
“I’ve been so lucky throughout my Scotland career, that it’s tricky to pick out a highlight. Getting our first win in the ICC T20 World Cup against Hong Kong in India in 2016 was special… but then so was the whole of 2018.
“The victory against England at The Grange was just amazing. That whole year - Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, England - just felt like a change of momentum and belief amongst the players about competing against the best teams in the world.
“Reaching the ICC T20 Super 12’s in 2021, having never achieved it before, and being the captain of that squad, will also always stay with me.
“Creating memories, being around friends, and always finding a way to punch above our weight was just terrific. I’ve always loved the battle of trying to improve against all odds.
“With both the current squad and past players, it’s all been so special. I must thank all the coaches and teammates and staff, and the support I’ve had from friends and family to help me in my career. There’s been so many people all around the world who have helped me to shape my career and will continue to do so.” (With inputs from icc-cricket.com)
