Former Pakistan Captain Sana Mir Announces Retirement

Former Pakistan Captain Sana Mir announced her retirement from international cricket, bringing an end to an illustrious 15-year career. She played 226 international matches for Pakistan, captaining the side in 137.

In a statement, she thanked the different stakeholders and pledged to continue serving her department ZTBL, if departmental cricket continues.

“I want to extend my gratitude to the PCB for giving me an opportunity to serve my country for 15 years. It has been an absolute honour and privilege. I extend my gratitude to all the support staff, players, ground staff and everyone behind the scenes for their contribution in my career and development of women’s cricket.

“I also want to thank my family and mentors who provided unconditional support that allowed me to fulfil my dreams of representing Pakistan at a global stage and would also like to thank my departmental team ZTBL for their support throughout my career. I look forward to continue serving them if department cricket continues.

“Last few months have provided me with an opportunity to contemplate. I feel it is the right time for me to move on. I believe I have contributed to the best of my ability for my country and the sport.

“During my cricket journey, I have met and built strong friendships and bonding with some amazing cricketers in women’s cricket. Listening about their stories and philosophies have not only made me a tougher and stronger athlete but have also taught me great things about life, which are beyond yourself or the sport or winning and losing.

“When I reflect on my debut, it gives me great satisfaction that I have been part of the process that has eventually resulted in a packed-to-capacity Lord’s for the ICC Women’s World Cup 2017 final, something that was further boosted by a record 87,000 spectators for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020 final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. These are great success stories for women’s cricket.

“I would like to extend my gratitude to ICC for its continuous support to women’s cricket. Tournaments like ICC Women’s Championship have been a real game changer, especially for teams like Pakistan, South Africa and Sri Lanka as they proved vital in helping us express our talent at the international level.

“Last but not the least, all the cricket fans and supporters around the world. Words fall short when I want to thank all of you for your love, support and encouragement you extended in the past 15 years. It has been an honour to serve Pakistan in cricket and to wear the green jersey with absolute pride. It is time for me to move on. InshaAllah the service will continue in essence and in a different form. Pakistan Zindabad.”

PCB Chief Executive Wasim Khan paid tribute to Sana Mir:

“On behalf of Pakistan cricket, I congratulate Sana Mir on a highly successful career. She has been the face of Pakistan women’s cricket for many years and the real source of inspiration for the young generation of women cricketers.

“Through her determination and passion, Sana broke the glass ceiling for women cricketers in the country. Through her performances, she not only improved the profile of women’s cricket in Pakistan but also enhanced the image of Pakistan globally.

“Sana is a true legend of women’s cricket who attracted, inspired and motivated young women athletes. Moving forward, I am sure she will continue to contribute positively to women’s cricket.”

The all-rounder made her debut against Sri Lanka in 2005 and ended her career with 151 wickets and 1,630 runs in international cricket. She is among the only nine women cricketers who have picked up 100 wickets and scored a thousand runs. Whereas, in 106 T20Is, she bagged 89 wickets and scored 802 runs.

The 34-year captained Pakistan from 2009 to 2017. In 72 ODIs and 65 T20Is under her leadership, team Pakistan won 26 games in each format. During this period, she led Pakistan in two fifty over Women’s World Cups (2013 and 2017) and five T20 World Cups (2009, 2010, 2012, 2014 and 2016). The Women’s team won the gold medals twice in Asian Games (2010 and 2014) during this period.

She was recently left out of the Women’s World T20 held in Australia and subsequently has decided to hang her boots. However, her imprint on the game will be large and she was perhaps Pakistan’s 1^st widely celebrated women cricketer.