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Four prominent faces of West Indian women's cricket--Anisa Mohammed, Shakera Selman, Kycia Knight and Kyshona Knight--announced their retirement from the game on Thursday, the International Cricket Council (ICC) informed.
Considered stalwarts of women's cricket, the four had stellar international careers and were also members of the winning Caribbean squad at the 2016 ICC Women's T20 World Cup held in India. Mohammed's career for the West Indies spanned over 20 years with her international debut coming in 2003 at the age of 15. She went on to represent West Indies in 141 ODIs and 117 T20Is, scalping 305 wickets. In 2016, Mohammed became the first ever West Indian cricketer--male or female--to pick up more than 100 wickets in the T20I format. "The last 20 years have been truly amazing. I have enjoyed every single minute of it. The highs and the lows. I believe the time has come for me to step away from the game and allow the young players to live their dreams as I have lived mine," Mohammed said while announcing her retirement, as quoted by the ICC as saying. "I was privileged enough to step onto the field wearing my maroon 258 times in my career. I have represented West Indies in five (5) ODI World Cups and seven (7) T20 World Cups. To my fellow teammates, thank you for all the love and respect shown to me during my time with you. You'll have made my journey a memorable experience," she added. A formidable right-arm pacer in her heydays, Shakera Selman made her debut in 2008 and picked up 133 wickets in 196 games across the two white-ball formats. In an official statement after bringing the curtains down on her career, Selman said, "This marks my final bow after 18 incredible years. I am proud of playing with and against legends, and lucky to have dismissed a few. My aim was always to inspire and assist others in their dreams." "I owe immense gratitude to God, my supportive family and friends, and to CWI, my teammates, and the medical and management teams for their unwavering guidance," she added. The twins, Kycia Knight and Kyshona Knight, played their first international matches in 2011 and 2013, respectively. Kycia, a wicketkeeper, holds many records including most dismissals (5) in women's T20I innings, most stumpings (4) in an innings and tied for most catches (4) in an innings. Kycia featured in 157 matches for the Windies in the shorter formats, aggregating 2128 runs. Her sister, Kyshona, a left-handed batter, scored 1397 runs in 106 matches for her country. The twins, in their statement, said, "As this marks the end of an enjoyable and amazing journey, we would like to take this time to thank our family, friends, teammates & supporters for the continued love and support throughout the years. None of this would've been possible without the support and love from you guys and for that we are forever grateful." "Lastly, thank you to CWI for the opportunities granted and memories that will be forever cherished," they added. (ANI)
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