Robin Smith to quit first class game

Robin Smith, one of England8217;s most successful batsmen over the last two decades, announced his first-class retirement on Friday on the eve of his 40th birthday.

The South African-born right-hander played 62 Tests for England between 1988 and 1996, scoring 4,236 runs at 43.67. He also played 71 one-day internationals with a batting average of 39.01. Smith, one of Wisden8217;s five players of the year for 1990, was ruled out of county cricket for three weeks earlier this month with a hamstring tear.

His retirement, at the end of the 2003 season, was announced at a news conference by Hampshire Cricket Club, for whom he played 307 matches in a first-class career that began 22 years ago. He scored 18,984 runs for the county and made 49 centuries. Smith, a powerful cutter of the ball, was a particularly good player of fast bowling and almost single-handedly stood up to the all-conquering Australian touring attack of 1989, which regained the Ashes.