5 cricketers whose international careers ended on an untimely basis

Quite a few cricketers have seen the harsher side of Cricket. These players could have been somewhere else, but life was not sympathetic with them. Here we list 5 players, who could have wonders, had they stuck around for a longer period of time:

1. Tatenda Taibu

When times were bad for Zimbabwe Cricket, Taibu emerged as a glimmer of hope. Everyone backed Taibu to bring instability to the unstable Zimbabwean side. Taibu was, at his time, the youngest player to become captain of a test team. He was just 20.

Taibu went on to represent Zimbabwe in 2012. Prior to that, Taibu announced his retirement when he was just 29. In total, Taibu played 29 Test Matches, 150 ODIS, and 17 T20 Internationals. Tabu went to serve the church, ultimately sacrificing his career in the process.

2. Mohammad Asif

Asif had the potential to become one of Pakistan’s greatest bowlers, however, it wasn’t meant to be. Asif possessed all the qualities of a world-class bowler. He had tremendous pace and the ability to swing the ball in a lethal manner.

Throughout his bowling career, Asif managed to pick up 173 wickets in total. With an average economy of just 4.71 in his ODI career, Asif could have been Pakistan’s next bowling sensation. However, his career plummeted after he was caught in the spot-fixing scandal back in 2008.

3. Mark Boucher

The South African veteran’s career succumbed to an eye injury. When Boucher was wicket-keeping against Somerset, the ball hit the wicket, and a bail hit Mark Boucher in his eye.

Boucher was immediately rushed to the hospital, wherein it was declared that he has a lacerated eyeball. He immediately announced his retirement following an excruciating 3-hour operation.

4. Craig Kieswetter

Kieswetter was instrumental in England’s victory in the 2010 T20 World Cup. Sadly, Kieswetter got hit by the bowl in his eye in a county game. Requiring immediate surgery, Kieswetter tried to continue playing cricket. However, he called it quits in June 2015 at the young age of 27.

5. Philip Hughes

The most tragic and heart-breaking ending was that of Philip Hughes. During the Sheffield Shield in 2014, Hughes was batting against Sean Abbott. After misjudging his bouncer, Hughes got hit by the ball in his neck. He collapsed instantly and was rushed to the hospital. Hughes went into a coma, and after that, never came back again. He sadly passed away on 27 November 2014.

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