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The stalwart of New Zealand Women's cricket, Katey Martin, announced retirement after serving the nation for 21 years on Wednesday. The 37-year-old wicketkeeper-batter had an illustrious career in which she made 200 international appearances, comprising 103 ODIs and 95 T20 Internationals. She termed playing for New Zealand a 'dream come true and thanked her teammates, coaches and fans for supporting her.'
"It's been an incredible experience. To all my teammates, coaches, opposition, fans and friends I've met along the way, I want to thank you for making my time in cricket so memorable," Martin said in a New Zealand Cricket release.
She even expressed gratitude towards New Zealand Cricket, the New Zealand Cricket Players Association and Otago Cricket for their support over her entire cricket.
Adding further, Martin recalled that cricket had given her everything in life, 'from leaving Dunedin as a youngster to attend the NZC Academy in Christchurch to travelling the world as White Fern, it's nothing less than a dream come true'.
Notably, Martin had made her international debut in 2003 in a Test match against India. She made her ODI debut later on the same tour at Brabourne Stadium. Her T20I debut came in 2008 against Australia Women. Martin revealed that she made her mind ahead of New Zealand's last match in the Women's World Cup held earlier this year against Pakistan. I knew heading into the game that it could be my last time playing for New Zealand; hence I was pretty emotional throughout the game," she revealed.
The modern-day cricket legend further informed that she discussed the same with her family and friends to solidify her decision before making it official on Wednesday (May 18). She finished her career with 1793 runs in ODIs and 996 runs in T20Is. She also took 63 catches and effected 19 stumpings in the 50-over format, while she took 33 catches and effected 24 stumpings in T20Is.