Bernadine Bezuidenhout retires from international cricket at 30

New Zealand wicketkeeper-batter Bernadine Bezuidenhout announced her retirement from international cricket at the age of 30. She decided to take the tough call so that she could focus on The EPIC Sports Project, the charitable trust founded by her.

Born in South Africa, Bezuidenhout represented the country of her birth in 2014 before moving to New Zealand. She made her debut for the White Ferns in 2018. She featured in 20 ODIs (four for South Africa) and 29 T20Is (seven for South Africa). The right-handed batter scored 291 runs in ODIs and 299 in T20Is. She has one half-century to her name in international cricket, which came in the 50-over format against Pakistan last year in Queenstown.

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Bezuidenhout said that it was a privilege to play for New Zealand and expressed her gratitude to everyone who stood by her in her journey. 

"It's been such a great ride. Playing for the WHITE FERNS has been a huge privilege and honour and it's left me with the fondest memories. The journey has taught me so much and I'll be forever grateful to everyone who has been on the path with me. I'm at peace with this decision but it wasn't an easy one to make. I've struggled to find a balance between my work and playing career for a while now, and after a lot of thought and reflection I feel that it's the right time to pivot and put my full focus on The EPIC Sports Project," Bezuidenhout was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz.

New Zealand head coach Ben Sawyer thanked Bezuidenhout for her contributions on and off the field for the country.

"I want to thank Bernie for the contributions she's made to the WHITE FERNS on the field, and for the caring qualities she brought to the group off the field. We're proud of the work that Bernie does outside of cricket and I have no doubt she'll continue to make a positive impact on the lives of many," said Sawyer.

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Bezuidenhout, meanwhile, will be available to play for Northern Districts as she expressed her interest to play domestic cricket in the forthcoming season.