Captain steps down as Test leader

Shattered Inzamam retires from one-day scene

Cricinfo staff

March 18, 2007

Inzamam-ul-Haq announces his decision at a press conference in Jamaica © Getty Images

Inzamam-ul-Haq, Pakistan's shattered leader, has announced his retirement from one-day cricket and resigned as Test captain. The match against Zimbabwe, Pakistan's last of this World Cup, following their shock defeat against Ireland on Saturday, will be his valedictory appearance in that form of the game.

"I have talked with my father on the phone," he said, "and have decided to retire from one-day cricket after the Zimbabwe match." Inzamam will, however, remain available for selection in Test cricket, a form of the game in which he has made 8813 runs in 119 Tests, with a highest score of 329 against New Zealand at Lahore.

The announcement was made on the same day that Bob Woolmer, Pakistan's coach, tragically collapsed and died at the team hotel in Kingston, Jamaica. Inzamam, visibly distraught at the news, told reporters: "I am shocked and badly hurt. We have lost a good coach and a good person."

Inzamam's one-day career was legendary. He played 377 matches over a 15-year career, scoring 11702 runs at 39.53 including 10 hundreds and 83 fifties. He shot to fame as a 22-year-old in Pakistan's triumphant World Cup campaign in 1992, belting his side into the final with a blistering 60 from 37 balls in the semi-final against New Zealand at Auckland.

He went on to contribute a vital 42 in the final itself, at Melbourne against England, but subsequent World Cup campaigns have been less impressive for him and his side. After losing in the final in 1999, he made just 19 runs in six innings in the 2002-03 tournament in South Africa, and made just 36 and 1 in Pakistan's two defeats this time around.

© Cricinfo

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Timing not right for distressed Inzamam

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