England women’s captain, Charlotte Edwards, has announced her retirement from international cricket with immediate effect.

When the 36-year-old batsman made her international debut as a 16-year-old in 1996 the women’s game was very much a minority sport. Few cricket fans could name an England women’s cricketer and the fact that the England Women’s side has enjoyed the success it has and attracted spectators and the media glow is not just down to Edwards, but a lot of it is.

“Everyone who knows me – and how much I love playing for England – will appreciate what a difficult decision it has been for me to retire from international cricket,” Edwards said. “It’s a decision I’ve reached after much thought and detailed discussion with Mark Robinson and Clare Connor about what is best for the team going forward.

“I have given 20 years to playing for England and I leave very proud of the standing in which the women’s game is held and of my contribution as a player and captain. As a 16-year-old girl making my debut for England, I couldn’t have dreamt that I would have had such an amazing time with so much success. I’ve travelled the world, won World Cups and Ashes series and shared it all with some of my closest friends.”

Edwards has made more international appearances than any other female cricketer in the history of the game, amassing 23 Test Match caps, 191 One-Day International (ODI) caps, and 95 Twenty20 International (T20I) caps. With 5,992 runs, she is the current all-time leading ODI run-scorer in women’s cricket, and has scored more T20I runs (2,605) than any other player in the world (man or woman).

Appointed England captain in 2006, she has led her country on 220 occasions, taking the team to ICC Women’s World Cup and ICC World Twenty20 glory in 2009, alongside winning the Women’s Ashes three times as captain – once in England (2013) and twice in Australia (2008 and 2014).

“Nothing lasts forever,” Edwards conceded. ” I believe now is the right time for a new captain to lead the team forward and for young players to be given more opportunities to make their mark on the international game. After honest and open discussions with Mark, it became clear that he wants to build a new team and I fully support that. I would have loved to have carried on and whilst I am disappointed that I won’t be doing so, I fully understand and respect what Mark is looking to do. This is a new era and he wants other players to come to the fore to build a strong team.”

In 2008 Edwards won the ICC Women’s Player of the Year award, and during 2014 was awarded a CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list, became only the second woman ever to be named as a Wisden Cricketer of the Year, and was the first female cricketer to be nominated for the coveted ICC LG People’s Choice Award.

“Aside from the team’s successes and my own personal record, I am most proud of where the women’s game is now,” Edwards added. “I have loved working with the ECB off the pitch to break new ground and to build a better future for the sport, and I hope to continue to play a role in this moving forwards.”

Tom Harrison, ECB Chief Executive, commented: “Charlotte Edwards has been at the heart of the England women’s team and a major force in international women’s cricket for two decades. Her outstanding achievements in the game during that time are unrivalled, and in many aspects, are unlikely to ever be surpassed. She is a credit to her country and our sport, and deserves nothing but celebration and enormous respect for the way in which she has played the game over the last 20 years. She leaves the most wonderful legacy, having inspired countless women and girls around the world to pick up a bat and a ball and play the game she so clearly loves.”

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James Buttler

Editor at World Cricket Badger

James has been working as a cricket journalist and broadcaster since 2006.
As the editor of Cricket Badger he is intent on building the website to give quality coverage of the domestic game around the world.
James was the full-time Media Manager at Yorkshire County Cricket Club between 2007 and 2010.
James is a published author and a writer/video contributor to many cricket publications.
He's unsurprisingly a complete cricket badger!

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