Azhar Ali retires from ODI cricket

LAHORE: Senior Pakistan batsman Azhar Ali on Thursday said he has decided to retire from limited-overs cricket, but will continue to play test series and on domestic platforms.

"This was not an impulsive decision and I put a lot of thought into it...I am retiring due to personal reasons," he said while addressing a press conference at Gaddafi Stadium.

A lot of people were not satisfied with my captaincy, he added.

Ali said that all his focus would be on Test cricket now and that he will try to give it his best.

He also praised Sarfraz Ahmed and said he is a good captain and needs to be supported.

Debuting in 2011 against Ireland, Ali represented Pakistan in 53 ODIs and took charge of the team in the fifty-over format in 2015.

He scored 1,845 runs at an average of 36.9, including three centuries and 12 half-centuries.

Ali last played an ODI match on January 13, 2018 against New Zealand.

The cricketer will address a press conference at 4pm in Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium today.