Published: Feb 08, 2016, 02:30 PM (IST)
Edited: Feb 08, 2016, 02:43 PM (IST)
Johannesburg: Former South Africa batsman Neil McKenzie is all set to join the Proteas side as a new batting consultant. According to Sport24, the 40-year-old revealed that Cricket South Africa (CSA) wants him to travel and work with the national side as and when required, including for the upcoming ICC World T20 in March. CSA, however, insisted that nothing has been confirmed as yet, adding that they would hold talks with McKenzie once he returns from the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The former opening batsman, who retired from all forms of cricket recently, is currently playing in the Masters Champions League (MCL) in Dubai, which is aimed at giving retired players a chance to take the field again. South African batsman Neil McKenzie announces international retirement
Earlier, McKenzie announced retirement from international cricket on Friday. He played First-Class cricket for 21 years and has almost 36,000 career runs. McKenzie along with other retired cricketers is currently participating in the ongoing Masters Champions League (MCL) 2016 in United Arab Emirates (UAE). He was picked by the franchise Virgo Super Kings, who played their opening fixture on Friday. They lost to Sagittarius Strikers by 26 runs with McKenzie only managing to score 14 runs from 16 balls he had faced. That innings was inclusive of three boundaries. During his career, McKenzie represented both South Africa and the bizhub Highveld Lions, captaining his franchise team on numerous occasions.
According to Cricket South Africa, McKenzie commented after making the announcement, “Cricket has given me a career, passion and terrific memories. Few players can say that they have been able to play at a professional level for this long and I am grateful for the opportunities, friendship and memories that I can take away from my playing career. The Bullring will always remain my home away from home and I hope to still be involved in the game at some level.”
