Vaibhav Tripathi
Steven Finn, 34, has retired retirement from all forms of cricket. The announcement arrives amid Finn’s struggle with a series of injuries, including a recent knee ailment that kept him out of the entire 2023 domestic season.
During his international career from 2010 to 2017, the England pace bowler took 125 wickets in 36 Tests. He also bagged 102 wickets in 69 ODIs, and 27 wickets in 21 T20Is.
“I have been fighting a battle with my body for the last 12 months and have admitted defeat to it,” he told BBC. “I feel incredibly lucky to have been able to play cricket as my vocation since I made my debut for Middlesex in 2005. The journey hasn’t always been smooth, but I have loved it nonetheless. To have played 125 games for England, including 36 tests, far surpassed what I dreamed of.”
Finn showcased his potential in just his second first-class game against Gloucestershire in 2007, taking a four-for. Three years later, Finn made his Test debut versus Bangladesh, picking up four wickets in the series. During the early part of his career, one of his impressive spells was against India at Eden Gardens, when he generated reverse swing at pace and got a three-for in the second innings.
A couple of years later, the 6’7″ bowler extracted a fair amount of bounce against Australia at Edgbaston and took his best haul in Tests – 6 for 79. Finn also was a part of the England line-up that won the Ashes in 2010-11 in Australia but was dropped after the Perth Test.
However, Finn was plagued by his tendency to brush the stumps at the non-striker’s end. Injuries also didn’t help his cause. He played his final Test against Bangladesh in 2016. Finn was picked for the Ashes 2017-18 but was ruled out with a knee injury.
After playing for Middlesex for close to 17 years, he joined Sussex in 2022. Incidentally, his final first-class game turned out to be against Middlesex.