Cricket News

Lizelle Lee’s sudden retirement hints at divide in South African Women’s side

Lizelle Lee’s sudden retirement from the team had taken the world by storm. As she did not disclose the actual reasons behind the same, it has raised definite questions about the oneness of the South African Women’s team. The South Africa Women’s team was in dire straits following her sudden retirement from the game. Recently, they were bowled out for under 225 in both matches and their line-up has appeared listless. The loss of Lizelle Lee is not easy to digest and they are indeed very big shoes to fill.

To try and replace Lizelle is not something that can happen overnight. Although there are players that are capable enough to still take the game forward, they need to be scoring consistently,” he said. “Lizelle is not a player you can replace overnight because of how explosive and dynamic she was. In the future hopefully, we will find a similar player who can go out and be as explosive as her.”

The opening batter stepped away from international cricket on July 8, saying she was “ready for the next phase of my career”, and would continue playing franchise T20 cricket but provided no other reasons for quitting until today.

It seemed like Lee had not hinted at her retirement as she travelled with the team after being named in the squads across all three formats. She also completed the rain-affected Test match, which ended in a draw. The choice by Lee to call it quits during the England tour at the age of just 30 raised many questions regarding Lee’s decision, even though it was shocking to the entire team and every cricket fan in the world.

One of the prime reasons why Lizelle Lee took the big step towards retirement is because the South African cricket board did not hand in any- objection certificate to the star batter without which she will not be able to play in England’s new franchise T20 tournament which is the hundred.

Moreeng, the South African women’s coach, denied all the allegations and was silent other than to state that he was “not aware” of the CSA’s resistance to granting Lee the necessary clearance. Due to the fracas that has unfolded, Lizelle Lee’s sudden retirement will be The South African Board’s loss and franchise cricket’s gain.