England pacer John Turner, who played four internationals for Three Lions announced his shocking retirement from professional cricket at the age of 25. Turner still had two years left on his Hampshire contract and had an ECB contract until late last year, decided to call time on his career due to persistent injury issues. Notably, the fast bowler was a part of the England squad for their West Indies tour in 2024, where he picked three wickets. However, he hasn’t featured in professional cricket in any capacity since June 2025 because of a stress fracture in back.

Turner, who has been facing constant injury issues, which have sidelined for most of the period, released a statement, confirming his retirement. The statement read, “It was always my dream to play professional and international cricket, and doing so for Hampshire and England has been nothing short of living out those same childhood dreams.”

He added, “I have, however, decided to retire from the game, and as you can imagine, this has been one of the hardest decisions I’ve had to make. The stress fracture, which has sidelined me for over a year, as well as my injury record, naturally made me think of my future both as a cricketer and away from the game, and subsequently, I decided now was the right time to pursue my next challenge.”

John Turner’s Journey from South Africa to England Cricket Dressing Room

John Turner studied at one of the most prestigious schools in South Africa, Hilton College, but later moved to the UK for college. He joined Hampshire at the age of 21 after a successful trial and was picked up in the England squad in 2023 following impressive performances in the Hundred. However, things started going south for Turner quite soon. He struggled to break into the Hampshire County Championship side and played only seven FC matches for them.

Also Read | Women's Asia Cup 2026 schedule announced: India to face Pakistan on September 5

Not only this, but he was also a part of three games on loan for Lancashire in early 2025 before injuries hit again. Talking about his wickets, the 25-year-old’s first wicket came against Alastair Cook, and he also finished the One-Day Cup in 2021 as the team’s joint second-highest wicket-taker.

In his first-class debut against Sri Lanka development XI, Turner claimed six wickets. His strongest spell came in the T20 format, where he claimed 21 wickets at an average of 11.76 during the 2023 T20 Blast.