Colin Munro celebrates half a century with the Black Caps in 2019.Photography/Photo Sports
One of the most exciting and destructive batsmen to ever wear the Black Cap has decided not to wear it anymore.
Colin Munro has announced his retirement from international cricket, officially ending a 123-match international career.
The explosive left-hander last played for the Black Caps in the fifth T20I against India at Bay Oval in 2020, but has played 65 T20Is and 57 ODIs for New Zealand. He played in one Test, scored over 3,000 international runs and took seven wickets.
Munro finishes his international career as the Black Caps' sixth all-time T20 International run-scorer, with a record 1,724 runs, including three centuries in a T20 International, at an average of 31 and a strike rate of 156.4.
A proud Auckland cricketer, Munro represented New Zealand at the ICC Under-19 World Cup in Sri Lanka in 2006, before making his international debut in all three formats on the 2012-2013 tour of South Africa. I accomplished it.
He went on to excel in white-ball formats, being a key member of the Blackcaps T20 and ODI teams from 2016 to 2019, and appearing at the 2014 and 2016 T20 World Cups, as well as in England. He also played in the 2019 ODI World Cup.
A hard-hitting top-order batsman, Munro broke numerous records on the international stage.
His 47-ball century against West Indies at Bay Oval in 2018 was New Zealand's fastest ever T20 century at the time, making him the first player to score three T20 international centuries. .
His 14-ball half-century against Sri Lanka at Eden Park in 2016 remains the fastest T20 half-century by a New Zealander and the fourth fastest in history.
Mr Munro expressed his pride in representing New Zealand on the world stage and said now was the right time to officially end his international career.
“Playing for the Black Caps has always been the biggest achievement of my playing career,” he said.
“I have never been more proud than to wear that jersey and the fact that I got to wear it 123 times across all formats is something I will always be incredibly proud of.
“It has been quite some time since I last played, but I never gave up hope that I might be able to get back to T20 form for the franchise.
“With the announcement of the Black Caps squad for the T20 World Cup, now is the perfect time to officially close that chapter.”
Among his many achievements on the international stage, Munro cites reaching the England 2019 World Cup final and sharing that experience with his family and team-mates as his favorite highlight of his Black Caps career. Ta.
NZC CEO Scott Wienink said Munro would be remembered as one of New Zealand's best multi-batsmen.
“Colin was one of the first players to embrace the aggressive 360-degree style of batting that is now accepted as best practice around the world,” Wienink said.
“He was one of the pioneers of the new game, an innovative batsman who took calculated risk-taking to a new level and ushered in what became a revolution in the way short-form cricket was played.
“We would like to thank him for his outstanding contribution in over 100 international matches and wish him all the best in his future endeavors.”
Although his international career has officially come to an end, Munro will continue to play franchise cricket around the world.