It is rightly said that you enjoy every moment of life because of what happens next, you never know. Everything has to end someday; some last longer, while some end in a fraction of seconds. It is not easy to build something, achieve something, but way simpler to break it. We can never predict the next moment. In the world of cricket, we know many cricketers whom we know for decades and still, they can entertain us, but there have been many unknown stars in this world, but we have forgotten them. Those were the players who had to bid farewell to their cricketing career very early due to some reason or other. Some even had to retire within hours of their career’s beginning. We are here with the list of the ten cricketers with the shortest career span and the story behind their retirements, which are worth reading.
1. Schoonheim
The most unfortunate cricketer with a very short career is Schoonheim. The debut match was also his last match, which lasted merely three hours as it was called off due to heavy rain. Since the match is in records, so does his name. The match was against Ireland.
2. Roy Park
Dr. Park played in place of Charles in a test match. He went in third place and was out on the first ball. Unfortunately, his wife could not watch him as a cricketer. Later he barely had any time for cricket as he had to focus on his medical career.
3. Jack MacBryan
Jack had already secured a gold medal at the 1920 Olympics, in hockey. But he got a chance to play in a test match by replacing Jack Hobbs. The luck was not with him, and the weather allowed them to play for only half a day. Sadly, he never got another chance.
4. Joseph McMaster
Joseph also had one of the shortest careers in test matches. A test match in South Africa only took two days to complete. He scored zero and did not get a chance to bowl. That is how he played his only and last match.
5. Clarence Wimble
Another one in the league with the shortest test careers is Transvaal player Wimble. He played for South Africa against England in Cape Town in 1892. England won, leaving Wimble with the shortest cricket career.
6. Anwar Ali
Anwar Ali played for Pakistan against Zimbabwe in October 2008. He was given 12 balls to a bowl, and he gave 19 runs and did not bat. Pakistan won, but he could not receive any good news regarding his career.
7. Greg Loveridge
Greg received a chance to bat against Zimbabwe in a test match at Hamilton. He broke his knuckle and was removed from the team. He further never got a chance to bowl or field. To be precise, his career lasted 22 balls.
8. Percy Herbert
Percy Herbert had the shortest first-class cricket career. He was selected to play. Percy’s match was stopped by the rain, and also it washed away his career in cricket. That was his only appearance, and literally, it was just an appearance.
9. Bransby Cooper
He suffered one of the earliest ends to test his career in cricket. He played against England, but never played again. Likewise, he shares his record with Ned Gregory.
10. Vijay Bharadwaj
He was one of the promising cricketers in the Indian team from 1999 to 2000. His game was commendable throughout the series, and he even scored a century. Even the tag of the man of the match could not save him from elimination. In 2004, he announced his retirement but played for Karnataka.
