Grant Elliott to retire from professional cricket at the end of 2018 season

39-year-old New Zealand all-rounder Grant Elliott has announced his retirement from all forms of cricket following the conclusion of his journey in the T20 Blast where he is captaining the Birmingham Bears side. Elliot led his team to the finals in the last season after taking captaincy over from the current top scorer in the T20 league Ian Bell.

This time around the Bears’ campaign has come to an end now as they have failed to qualify for the knockouts in the North Division, finding themselves on the 6th spot out of 9 teams in the table with 6 wins from 14 matches. His decision was pushed by the fact that their campaign came to a premature end.

Keen to create something outside of the game

“I’ll be open to games in Switzerland, ice cricket and those sorts of things,” Elliott told BBC WM’s Bears Podblast. “But, in terms of competitive cricket and playing for teams around the world, I’m keen on trying to create something outside of the game.”

After enjoying a stellar international career in which he represented New Zealand in over 100 matches, Elliot signed a Kolpak deal in 2017 to end his international affiliation with the national team and has since played for the Bears. His most memorable moment, without a doubt, came in the 2015 World Cup as he single handed helped New Zealand clinch a thrilling semi final victory over South Africa at his home ground. He remained unbeaten as New Zealand chased down the target in the dying moments of the match. Unfortunately, the co-hosts fell short in the finals to eventual champions Australia.

“I realized why I played the game four years ago,” he said. “It’s a hard game. There’s a lot of pain. But it’s because of the camaraderie and the team elements. I love hanging around with the lads in the changing room, sharing a win. That’s what excites me. The actual games, I don’t really remember what happens out there. You want to do your best but the people that you meet in the game is just awesome. A really neat group of elite sportspeople, who can be your mates for life,” Elliott said.

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