Heinrich Klaasen reveals shocking reason behind international retirement

Recently-retired South Africa batter Heinrich Klaasen has revealed the shocking reason behind his retirement from international cricket.

Klaasen took the cricketing world by storm last week when he announced that he has retired from all forms of international cricket.

The decision was considered a blow for South Africa ahead of their co-hosting of the 2027 World Cup, where he would have been a major draw card.

While he did not provide specifics of his decision in his announcement, Heinrich Klaasen is now opening up about the same.

In a recent interview with a foreign media outlet, the South Africa batter revealed that he retired from cricket because he lost interest in playing.

“I felt for a long time that I didn’t really care about any of my performances and whether the team won or not. That’s the wrong place to be. I had a long conversation with Rob [Walter] before the Champions Trophy, and I told him I didn’t feel good in my heart about what was going on. I wasn’t enjoying it that much,” he said.

Heinrich Klaasen added, “We talked nicely, we planned everything nicely up to and including the World Cup in 2027. So when he finished as coach and the [contract] negotiations [with CSA] didn’t go as planned, it made my decision a lot easier.”

Read more: South Africa power hitter Klaasen retires from international cricket

The former South Africa batter expressed his joy over having all the time to spend with his family after years of travel with the national team.

“Now I can spend six, seven months at home. My family needs it, it’s been a long four years with a lot of travel. I need a little rest,” he added.