Former Proteas captain Dean Elgar announces retirement

Proteas batter Dean Elgar has announced that he will retire from international cricket following the upcoming Test series against India.

Elgar will end his international career with the two Test matches – the first to be played at his home ground in Centurion from 26 December and the second in Cape Town from 3 January.

The 36-year-old has represented South Africa in 84 Tests and eight One-Day Internationals during a career that has spanned 11 years.

Since making his Test debut against Australia in 2012, he has gone on to score over 5,000 runs at an average of 37.28, including 13 centuries and a career-best 199 against Bangladesh in 2017.

National captain

His contributions with the bat and gritty performances earned him the role of Test captain between May 2021 and January 2023, when he led the side to third place in the second edition of the ICC World Test Championship.

“Playing the game of cricket has always been a dream of mine but having the opportunity to represent your country is the ultimate,” Elgar said on Friday.

“Having had the privilege to do it for 12 years internationally is simply beyond my wildest dreams. It has been an incredible journey that I have been fortunate enough to have.”

‘A real ambassador’

Cricket South Africa (CSA) chief executive Pholetsi Moseki thanked Elgar for his services to the national squad.

“Dean has represented his country with honour and has been a real ambassador for CSA, always playing with his heart on his sleeve,” Moseki said.

“His grittiness and determination are two qualities that really stood out; and these are attributes that all South Africans can relate to. On behalf of everyone at CSA, we wish him well for the future.”