NewDelhi Nov 5 : West Indies allrounder Dwayne Bravo on Thursday announced he will retire from international cricket following the conclusion of the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in UAE. Bravo confirmed his decision right after West Indies’ were eliminated from the semi-finals race of the T20 World Cup following their 20-run defeat at the hands of Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi.
“I think the time has come,” Bravo said. “I’ve had a very good career. To represent the West Indies for 18 years, had some ups and downs, but as I look back at it I’m very grateful to represent the region and the Caribbean people for so long.
West Indies’ final match at the ongoing world cup against Australia on Saturday will thus be Bravo’s final in Windies’ colours.
“To win three ICC trophies, two with my captain (Daren Sammy) on the left here. One thing I am proud about is that the era of cricketers we had we were able to make a name for ourselves on the global stage,” Bravo said.
Bravo, 34, made his international debut in April 2004 in an ODI against England and in the same year, also played his first Test as well. Two years later, he made his T20I debut, a format that suited him the most.
He went on to play 40 Tests and 164 ODIs scoring a combined 3188 runs and took 285 wickets as well. He has so far played 90 T20Is in which he has scored 1245 runs and taken 78 wickets.
Bravo was an integral part of the Windies teams that won the T20 World Cups in 2012 and 2016. In fact, he took the winning catch when they won the trophy for the first time.
He was also part of the West Indies team that won the 2004 ICC Champions Trophy when they beat England in the final.
“For me now I want to try and pass on whatever experience and information I have with the younger players,” Bravo said. “I think in the white ball formats West Indies cricket have a bright future and it’s important for us to keep supporting the guys and keep encouraging them.”
Bravo rued Windies exit from the Super 12 stage but said the team should be proud of the way they performed amidst the tough competition
“It wasn’t the World Cup we expected, it wasn’t the World Cup we wanted as players. We shouldn’t feel sorry for ourselves, it was a tough competition, we should keep our heads high,” he said.
“It’s important for us to have our own identity and not always be in the shadow of the previous legends. Obviously, what these guys have done in the 70s, 80 and early 90s, we respect that and these are the guys who inspired us to play the game.”
“This is a format that was born in 2008 or something like that, for us to dominate the way we dominate in that short period of time in a fairly new format – I remember having a conversation with you (Sammy) that ‘yes, Sir Viv and Sir Gary have their own legacy, Sir Clive Lloyd and these guys, but we have our opportunity to create our own.’ We should be proud of ourselves.
“We create our own legacy. Some people might think this is a format that a lot of people don’t respect, but the reality is this is an ICC tournament and it’s a tournament that is sanctioned by ICC cricket so we should be proud of what we have achieved,” he added.