Hindustan Times ·
The slayer of Shaheen Shah Afridi, Matthew Wade announces complete retirement; he has played his last important games
The 38-year-old left-handed wicketkeeper batsman was playing T20 and List A cricket for the last two years after his international retirement in 2024.
So, we have seen the last of Matthew Wade – the former Australia wicketkeeper batsman who hit Pakistan pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi for three consecutive sixes to knock Babar Azam's men out of the 2021 T20 World Cup hosted by the UAE and Oman. Pakistan were favourites to win the tournament at that point, but Wade played a once-in-a-lifetime innings to shock the subcontinental team in the semifinals. Australia went on to beat New Zealand in the final to win their maiden T20 World Cup title. That innings, if truth be told, is Wade’s legacy. With that onslaught, he etched his name in the annals of history. In a career where he should have achieved a lot more, that’s the only real glory that came his way.
Anyway, Wade, who announced his international retirement two years ago, continued to play the Big Bash League (BBL) for Hobart Hurricanes and List-A cricket for Tasmania. On Thursday he informed that he wasn’t in for another summer. The 38-year-old played 36 Tests, 97 ODIs and 92 T20Is for Australia. He was a feisty cricketer and often rattled opposition batsmen with his relentless chatter behind the wicket.
