South African all-rounder Farhaan Behardien announces retirement: Details
South African batting all-rounder Farhaan Behardien has called time on his 18-year-old professional career. Behardien, 39, announced his decision on his official Twitter handle. He represented South Africa in 59 ODIs and 38 T20Is since his debut in 2012. He last played an international game in November 2018. Behardien played for Boland in the domestic circuit till earlier this month. Here's more.
Behardien announces his retirement
Behardien had a dominating season in 2011-12
Behardien shot to fame in the 2011-12 South African domestic season. He averaged a phenomenal 45.66 in the One-Day competition, while his average read 66.50 in the T20s. He was named South African T20 player of the year at the 2012 CSA awards. The accolade earned him a spot on the national side.
A look at Behardien's international career
Behardien made his international debut in a T20I game against India in March 2012. He went on to amass 518 runs in 38 matches, averaging 32.37 (50s: 1). Behardien, who bowled right-arm pace, clipped three wickets. In ODIs, he debuted a year later against New Zealand. He aggregated 1,074 runs in 59 matches at 30.68. He slammed six half-centuries. Behardien also pocketed 14 scalps.
Behardien captained SA in T20Is
Back in January 2017, Behardien was named SA's T20I captain for three-match series against Sri Lanka at home. The appointment came on the back of stupendous numbers in the CSA T20 Challenge 2016-17. Playing for Titans, Behardien concluded as the joint-second-highest run-getter. He scored 352 runs at a mouth-dropping average and strike rate of 117.33 and 188.23, respectively. SA, however, lost the series 1-2.
Behardien featured in four ICC World Cups
Behardien featured in three ICC T20 World Cups: 2012, 2014, and 2016. He was also a part of the 50-over World Cup in 2015. Behardien also won 17 titles in his 18-year-long career.
What's next for Behardien?
Behardien, who made his domestic debut in 2004, slammed 7,315 runs in FC cricket at 40.63 (100s: 12, 50s: 46). As for T20s, the middle-order batter racked up 3,719 runs (SR: 131.13). He was also a part of the Punjab Kings squad in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2016. It's still unclear if he would continue playing certain formats of the game.
