Usman Shinwari retires from international cricket at just 31

Usman Shinwari, the 31-year-old left-arm fast bowler, has announced his retirement from international cricket after representing Pakistan in one Test, 17 ODIs and 16 T20Is from 2013 to 2019.

Shinwari made his international debut in a T20I against Sri Lanka in Dubai in December 2013, conceding nine runs without picking up a wicket in his only over. He had played four T20Is before making his ODI debut, also against Sri Lanka in Sharjah, in October 2017. The only Test appearance came in December 2019, against Sri Lanka again, in Rawalpindi. That was the last time he played for Pakistan.

His time in international cricket was hampered by a back injury, which flared up often.

It was in ODIs that Shinwari was at his best, picking up two five-wicket hauls - including in his second appearance, against Sri Lanka in Sharjah in October 2017, when he returned 5 for 34. The five wickets came in the space of 21 balls. The other five-wicket haul came in his penultimate ODI, against Sri Lanka in Karachi in September 2019.

Shinwari first caught the attention of the national selectors when he was 19, in 2013, when he crushed Misbah-ul-Haq's Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited in the departmental T20 Cup final. Seaming and swinging the ball, Shinwari returned 5 for 9 in 3.1 overs. That led to him being fast-tracked into the T20I side, but he failed to replicate his domestic form in international cricket.

He was last in action in Pakistan's National T20 Cup, where he turned out for Quetta Region, but failed to pick up a wicket in four games.