Pakistan’s former national team captain has announced her retirement from international cricket after a distinguished 15-year career. With 228 international caps, her last appearance was in the 2023 T20 World Cup.
Javeria Khan, 35, made her international debut in 2008 during the Women’s Asia Cup in One-Day Internationals. Initially introduced as a bowling all-rounder, she returned figures of 0/36 (10) as an off-spinner and batted at number 10. However, concerns over her bowling action led to her transition into a specialist batter. In 2009, she found her place in the middle order, and by 2010, advanced to the top order, eventually taking on the role of an opening batter.
In the format, Javeria averaged 28.57 and accumulated 2885 runs, with her highest score being an unbeaten 133* from 113 innings. Her maiden ODI century came in 2015 against Sri Lanka, where she remained not out on 133* off 141 balls. Three years later, in 2018, she scored her second and only other international century, also against Sri Lanka, finishing unbeaten on 113* off 142 balls. Alongside her two centuries, she also registered 15 half-centuries in her ODI career.
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Javeria Khan announces retirement after serving international cricket for over 15 years.
She played 228 International matches, scored 4903 runs. #CricketTwitter pic.twitter.com/w217gRvc7K
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A year after her international debut in 2008, Javeria debuted in the shortest format, T20Is in 2009. She accumulated 2018 runs from 106 T20I innings, with her highest score being an unbeaten 74*. Notably, she has scored 10 half-centuries in T20Is, with her best innings of 74* coming against Ireland in 2018. While her last ODI appearance was in 2022 during the 50-over World Cup against India, her final T20I turned out to be in the 2023 T20 World Cup against Ireland.
Javeria’s retirement note on X read, “There was joy and sorrow, but above all a sense of great pride that kept me going for 15 years. The privilege of wearing Pakistan’s jersey was way bigger than the odds that struck through my cricketing journey. I am blessed to have lived my life doing what I loved doing the most and will continue to do so. Now when I look back, it gives me great satisfaction to see that the path that my friends and I chose to walk on was least trodden when I started playing professionally, but is now open for so many girls in Pakistan.”
She further wrote, “Things change, scripts change, and new paths beckon. There is a time for everything, and now I believe is the best time to call it a day and announce my retirement. However, I’ll be available to play league cricket,” concluding, thanking the board, her family, and supporters.
Javeria debuted as a bowling all-rounder, swiftly ascending to the batting order. She emerged as the second-highest run-scorer in ODIs and T20Is for Pakistan, achieving the remarkable feat of surpassing 2,000 runs in each format alongside Bismah Maroof. Notably, she holds the distinction of being the first Pakistani opener to record a century in international cricket and the first to achieve multiple centuries.
Javeria has been a stalwart for Pakistan, featuring in four 50-over World Cups (2009, 2013, 2017, and 2022) and all eight editions of the T20 World Cup (2009, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, and 2023). Additionally, she contributed to Pakistan’s success in the 2010 and 2014 Asian Games, securing gold medals for her team.
Javeria’s leadership extended beyond her playing career, as she captained the Pakistan women’s team in 17 ODIs and 16 T20Is. Notably, she led the side in two editions (2018 and 2020) of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cups. Additionally, she furthered her cricketing expertise by participating in the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Level 2 Cricket Coach course held in Lahore last August.
Head of women’s cricket, Tania Mallick, lauded Javeria’s contributions and stated her as an inspiration for girls. She said, “On behalf of the PCB and all cricket fans, I extend heartfelt gratitude to Javeria Khan for her invaluable contributions to women’s cricket in Pakistan. Her glittering records with the bat speak for themselves, and I am confident that her illustrious career will inspire many girls in the country to not just take up this sport but also excel at it across many years.”
(Quotes sourced from Pakistan Cricket Board Media Release)
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