Afghanistan Batter Noor Ali Zadran Retires from International Cricket

Noor Ali Zadran, Afghanistan's ODI cap number nine, retired from international cricket on Thursday after two Tests, 51 ODIs, and 23 T20Is. Zadran, who hit a 28-ball 45 in Afghanistan's first-ever maiden one-day international against Scotland during the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifiers in 2009. Noor played his farewell Test against Ireland at the Tolerance Oval last week.

Had a balanced career -

The 35-year-old opener finished with 1216 ODI runs, which includes a century and seven fifties. He made his T20I debut in 2010 and last played in 2023. The opening batsman also made a surprise Test debut earlier this year, following his maiden call-up to the longest and toughest version of the game. Interestingly, Zadran received his Test cap from his nephew and teammate Ibrahim Zadran. In the second innings of the Test match, the two combined for an opening stand of 106 runs.

Stellar performance in the Asian Games -

He was called to the team for the T20Is at the Asian Games in October 2023, after last playing for them in the 2019 ODI World Cup. At the Asian Games, he scored 51 and 39 points against Sri Lanka and Pakistan, respectively, as Afghanistan defeated both teams on their way to the final against India, which ended in a no-result due to rain, with India winning the gold medal because they were the higher-ranked team.

Named in the squad of 1st ODI team -

Noor Ali was a part of Afghanistan's first officially recognized one-day international team, which met Scotland in Benoni in April 2009. Noor Ali opened the batting and scored a 28-ball 45, helping his team win by 89 runs. Noor's first T20 International, in February 2010, was Afghanistan's second match under the format. One of his career highlights was a half-century against India in Afghanistan's first-ever T20 World Cup appearance in 2010. He also played for the team that defeated Zimbabwe in the first round of the T20 World Cup in 2016.