Former Australia skipper Tim Paine announces retirement from first-class cricket

Sydney: Former Australia Test captain Tim Paine retired from cricket with little fanfare on Friday, bowing out after playing an inter-state match in Tasmania. Paine led Australia between 2018 and 2021 after Steve Smith was stripped of the captaincy in the wake of the “Sandpaper-gate” ball-tampering incident against South Africa. He skippered the team in 23 Tests – winning 11, losing eight and drawing four – and was credited with helping rebuild Australian cricket’s reputation. Paine was forced to stand down after it was revealed he had sent lewd messages to a female colleague in 2017. As the scandal took its toll, he stepped away from cricket for the “foreseeable future”, returning to the game almost a year later in October 2022. The wicketkeeper-batsman, 38, played his final first-class game for state side Tasmania in a domestic fixture against Queensland on Friday, walking off through a guard of honour formed by players. “An inspiring captain, one of our finest glovesman and a legend of Tasmanian and Australian cricket,” the Tasmanian Tigers said in a statement. “Congratulations Tim Paine on a truly wonderful career.” Paine played 35 Tests for Australia, with a top score of 92 and an average of 32.63. He also played 35 ODIs. Australia regained the Ashes in England in 2019 under Paine’s leadership, in what was otherwise a turbulent period for the Test side. Current Test skipper Pat Cummins took over from Paine in November 2021, describing him at the time as a “well-loved and respected figure of our team”. Read all the  Latest News,  Trending News,  Cricket News,  Bollywood News, India News and  Entertainment News here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.