Australian fast bowler James Pattinson has retired from Test cricket ahead of the Ashes, according to The Australian.
The 31-year-old has been struggling with a knee injury ahead of the big series and the start of the Test season, and has informed team selectors that he would be unavailable, according to the publication.
Pattinson was expected to be part of the fast bowling attack that includes Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood. The four of them have, for several years, formed the core of the team’s pace battery.
The player from Victoria burst onto the scene in 2011 with an impressive debut series against New Zealand, for which he was named man of the series, and then followed that up with another man-of-the-match performance against India on the Boxing Day Test that year.
But injuries have plagued his decade-long career and the emergence of the Cummins-Starc-Hazlewood trio made him the nation’s fourth-choice bowler.
Unless he makes a U-turn on his decision to quit the longest format of the game, Pattinson’s Test figures will read 81 wickets at an average of 26.06 from 21 matches.
His last Test was the victory over New Zealand in January 2020, in which he failed to take any wickets.
Pattinson had recently told the Cricket Australia website that he wanted to relax and enjoy domestic cricket, hinting that he might step away from the international stage.
“The hardest part as you get older is that you want to try and enjoy your cricket as well. You put all your attention into playing cricket for Australia and at some stage, that finishes.
“This year is a big one for me if I can crack in and try and get an opportunity at the Test level. If not then I probably wouldn’t mind just looking to try and enjoy my cricket somewhere towards the back-end of my career.
“I’m going into it pretty relaxed and trying to say ‘you’re having one last crack at trying to play Test cricket and get a good run at it’. I’d just like to play consistent cricket, wherever it may be,” he said.
It is not clear yet whether Pattinson will make himself available for selection in the shorter formats.
