Netherland's Batter Ben Cooper Announces Retirement From International Cricket

The Netherlands batsman Ben Cooper on Saturday announced his retirement from international cricket after eight years in Orange.

"Today, I announce my retirement from international cricket. It has been an absolute honour and privilege to don the oranges and represent the Netherlands for the last eight years," Cooper posted on Twitter.

"It's been a time filled with amazing highs, special moments and tough lows. There's nothing I would change about it and will look back at my time with very fond memories," he added.

Cooper, who was born in New South Wales, made his international debut for the Netherlands in an ODI in August 2013, against Canada. In all, he played 71 white-ball internationals for the Netherlands, scoring 1426 runs. He retires as the Netherlands' highest run-getter in T20I cricket, with 1239 runs at an average of 28.15 and a strike rate of just under 125.

The 29-year-old thanked the Netherlands cricket board, his teammates, coaches and parents for everything.

"@knc bcricket thank you for the opportunity to live out a childhood dream. To my Netherlands teammates and coaches (past and present) I thank you all for the amazing memories and couldn't ask for better people to share the field and change rooms with," he wrote.

"To my parents and family who have supported me endlessly. Travelling across the world to watch live and never stopped believing in me, thank you so much," he added.

Cooper, who played his last game at the 2021 T20 World Cup in the UAE, believes upcoming talented players will achieve great things for Dutch cricket.

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"I have no doubt the current squad and the talent coming through will continue to achieve great things for Dutch cricket," he said.