David Willey retirement, England vs Australia, contract list, squad, news, video

England player David Willey has announced that he will retire from international cricket after the ongoing World Cup after missing out on a national center contract.

The 33-year-old left-hander, also a hard-hitting lower-order batsman, was the only member of reigning champions England’s struggling 15-man squad in India not to get a single deal.

That decision left Willey in the strange position of trying to turn around England’s dismal title defense while knowing his bosses were unwilling to secure his future as an international cricketer.

“I never wanted this day to come,” Willey said in an Instagram post announcing his retirement.

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England have won just one of the six matches played and are currently at the bottom of India’s 10-team table.

Willey took 3-45 in Lucknow last weekend, including dismissing star batsman Virat Kohli for nothing, although his haul could not prevent England suffering a 100-run defeat to the unbeaten hosts.

“From a young age I have only dreamed of playing cricket for England,” Willey added.

“So, with careful consideration and consideration, it is with great regret that I feel the time has come for me to retire from all forms of international cricket at the end of the World Cup.

“I wore the shirt with enormous pride and gave everything to the badge on my chest.”

Willey made this announcement even though Jos Buttler’s men still have three group matches to play, starting with the clash against arch-rivals Australia in Ahmedabad on Saturday.

“(Willey’s) been England’s best player in the last three games. England handed out 29 contracts and he wasn’t worth a one year contract, which I found staggering. The way he has been treated at this World Cup is disgraceful,” former England captain Michael Vaughan told the BBC. Special test match on Wednesday.

“You’ve got a player playing in a World Cup, there’s a T20 World Cup next June, and even if you don’t think David Willey will be in the squad for the T20 World Cup at this stage, he’s probably injured. 15. “So you can’t tell me you don’t want to look after someone like David Willey. I don’t understand how you can hand out 29 contracts and yet not give one to someone who is playing the best in the World Cup.”

Willey has played 70 ODIs and 43 T20s for England. He missed their World Cup triumph in 2019 after being dropped from the squad shortly before the tournament, with fast bowler Jofra Archer taking his place.

However, Willey was part of England’s T20 World Cup winning squad in Australia last year.

He insisted his decision to retire from international cricket had “nothing to do” with England’s performance in the World Cup.

“I’m sure everyone who knows me has no doubt that regardless of my involvement in the rest of this campaign, I will give it my all and more! That’s the only way I know,” he wrote.