Agency :
New Zealand fast-bowler Trent Boult announced that the next game against Papua New Guinea will be his last T20 World Cup match.
New Zealand were eliminated before their nine-wicket win over Uganda, after consecutive defeats against Afghanistan and West Indies and the spearhead revealed he will not return to the competition.
The left-arm pacer ends his World Cup career as one of the best fast bowlers of his generation with 81 wickets in 60 T20Is.
“Speaking on behalf of myself, this will be my last T20 World Cup. I look at the partnership with Tim with very fond memories. We bowled a lot of overs together. I know the partnership very well, and obviously he’s a very good friend on and off the ground. It was nice to wind back the clock a little bit and see a bit of swing bowling at the top. Some great memories, and hopefully a couple more still to come,” said Boult.
Whether Boult will continue to play for New Zealand in any capacity remains uncertain as he had opted out of a central contract in 2022, choosing to play T20 franchise cricket around the world instead.
By failing to qualify for the Super 8 stage, the 2024 edition of the T20 World Cup will be the first T20 World Cup since 2014 that will not have New Zealand as one of its four semifinalists.