Pitcher quits cricket for cycling

Arthur Pitcher, the Bermuda batsman, has decided to quit cricket and concentrate on his cycling career after being frustrated by the lack of commitment shown by his colleagues in the team.

"With cycling you're racing for the finish line and everybody wants to get their first," Pitcher told the Bermuda Sun. "There's more commitment than I was finding in cricket. I still have a love for the game of cricket but the work ethic is not there. With cricket you need all 11, with cycling it is just you. You can only blame yourself for failure."

Pitcher, 27, played three ODIs for Bermuda - all against Netherlands in 2007 - in which he scored 20 runs with an average of 6.66. He did not feature in the World Cup that year. He also played a first-class game for Bermuda in the Intercontinental Cup.

"As I was established in cricket, I stayed with it, but a few things took place last season and I just got fed up with it. When I first started out cycling last season I took a lot of licks. I was getting left behind on the Sunday club rides and I made a point to push and push and say to myself I'm not letting these guys get away from me any more. I had the fight to stay with the big guys and now I'm improving and winning a few races."

Bermuda's failure to qualify for the Super Eights in the recent World Cup Qualifiers resulted in a loss of ODI status that they held for four years.