KEY POINTS:
Scott Styris today confirmed his retirement from test cricket.
The 32-year-old made the announcement when the New Zealand one-day squad assembled in Auckland ahead of Twenty20 matches against England in Auckland and Christchurch this week.
Styris, who was dropped ahead of the two-test series against Bangladesh last month, will continue to be available for the shorter versions of the game but will not seek to resurrect his 29-test career.
Styris, who has scored 1586 runs at an average of 36.04 since scoring a hundred on debut against the West Indies in 2002, deprives the selection panel of an experienced option for the six upcoming tests, home and away, against England.
The middle order batsman, who is also a useful medium pace bowler, has also quit the English county circuit, where he most recently played for Middlesex.
Styris is aligned to the sanctioned Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 competition alongside New Zealanders Stephen Fleming, Jacob Oram, Daniel Vettori and Brendon McCullum.
Fleming is also thought to be on the verge on retiring from international cricket after relinquishing the captaincy of the one-day team after the World Cup last April.
He is expected to end his career after the third test against England at Nottinghamshire in June.
- NZPA
