Paul Collingwood announces retirement from cricket

Former England captain and Durham all-rounder Paul Collingwood has announced that he will retire from first-class cricket at the end of the season.

The 42-year-old, who made his first-class debut in 1996, has, to date, scored close to 17,000 runs, including 4259 runs for England in Tests.

England's most capped player in ODIs with 197 matches, Collingwood led the team to victory in the 2010 ICC World T20, their only major international title to date.

His international career began in 2001, with his ODI debut against Pakistan. Two years later, he was handed his first Test cap and went on to play 67 more games from 2003 to 2011.

Collingwood's moment of high in the English jersey came with the 2010 World T20 title; while he did not perform exceptionally with the bat, managing only 61 runs at an average of 10.16, his captaincy was well-received. He was also one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Year 2007, along with teammate Monty Panesar.

'Colly' led England to the title in the 2010 World T20

He retired from Test cricket after the 2010-11 Ashes and joined the England and Scotland teams as supporting staff. In 2015, he was named England's limited-overs consultant.

In a statement, the all-rounder was quoted as saying:

“After much thought and deliberation, I have decided to announce my retirement from cricket at the end of the current season.”

“I knew this day would eventually come but it hasn’t made it any easier - although it’s an emotional decision, I know that the time is right and I’m comfortable knowing that I have given every last ounce of energy to the sport.

“I have achieved so much with both Durham and England, far more than I ever imagined, and I feel extremely privileged to have had such a long and rewarding career.

“It has been an honour to represent Durham County Cricket Club for the last 23 years and I would like to thank the staff, coaches, teammates and members for their tremendous support and for making my career so enjoyable."

“I am excited about what the future holds for me and am looking forward to new challenges.”

Collingwood's final game will be the County Championship clash against Middlesex starting September 24.