Canada's Veteran Cricketer Navneet Dhaliwal Announces Retirement After Afghanistan Match

Kathmandu. Canada's veteran player Navneet Dhaliwal has announced his retirement from international cricket following the final group stage match against Afghanistan in Chennai.

The 37-year-old Dhaliwal has been a key weapon in Canada's batting lineup for over a decade. He also captained the team in T20 Internationals, including the 2024 T20 World Cup.

At the pre-match press conference, he stated, "I had already made the decision before coming here. I have been playing for more than 12 years. So this is a planned decision, and tomorrow's match will be my last international game."

Dhaliwal debuted for Canada's senior team in January 2015 during the World Cricket League Division-2 tournament in Namibia. He secured a place in the national team after an excellent performance with the Canada 'A' team during the Zimbabwe tour.

He has 18 One Day Internationals and 48 T20 International caps to his name. In the 2024 T20 World Cup, he became the first Canadian player to score a World Cup half-century by scoring 61 runs against the USA. He is also Canada's highest run-scorer in T20 Internationals. He captained in 29 T20 Internationals, in which Canada won 21 matches.

Dhaliwal played a significant role in Canada's rebuilding journey after failing to retain ODI status from the 2019 World Cricket League-2. He won the 'Player of the Match' award four times in the tournaments held in Malaysia and on home soil under the 2019-2023 Cricket World Cup Challenge League.

After Canada regained ODI status in 2023, he scored half-centuries against Nepal and Namibia in the ongoing Cricket World Cup League-2 to lead the team to victory.

According to him, qualifying for the 2024 World Cup was the most memorable moment of his career. He said, "Qualifying for the 2024 T20 World Cup for the first time was the biggest achievement. Scoring runs in the first match of the World Cup and being the captain was a moment of pride for me."

Although his playing career is ending, he intends to remain involved with cricket.

"I am thinking of becoming a coach, but not at the national level. My priority will be young players. I enjoy training youngsters. Once cricket is in your blood, it's hard to leave all at once," he said.

In the T20 World Cup 2026, Dhaliwal has already scored 108 runs in three matches, including a 64-run innings against South Africa."