Inzamam calls it a day

Inzamam-ul-Haq is standing down as captain of the Pakistan one-day side © Getty Images

Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq has announced he will retire from international one-day cricket after the World Cup in the West Indies.

He made the announcement just hours after the death of Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer had stunned the cricket world, and a day after his team suffered a shock defeat against Ireland to become the first country knocked out of the 2007 World Cup.

The Pakistan skipper’s final ODI appearance will come against Zimbabwe in his side’s final group match at Sabina Park on Wednesday.

Inzamam has played in 377 one-day internationals, averaging 39.53.

The three-wicket defeat to Ireland was described by the burly batsman as the “worst day of his cricketing career”.

After the game he refused to speculate on his future, stating: “It's only been a few minutes and I can't say what I'll do.

“Since we haven't performed, changes are likely and needed too.

“Every player has to go some day. I've had my innings, and you can't really choose the way you leave."

Inzamam later revealed he had been considering his position as Pakistan skipper before the tragic death of Woolmer.

Inzamam-ul-Haq and Bob Woolmer © Getty Images

“It’s a very deeply disturbing time for me but we have to carry on,” Inzamam told a hastily-arranged news conference attended by the entire Pakistan World Cup squad.

“I had spoken to Bob on Saturday after the match against Ireland and I told him I wanted to talk about my future.

“Bob felt we should have left it until Sunday but it never happened.

“It’s a deeply emotional time for all of us, and for me, it will be difficult to continue.”

However, Inzamam paid tribute to the role his team-mates played in helping him cope with one of the most high-pressure jobs in Pakistan, most notably when he kept the team off the field in last summer’s fourth Test against England.

Pakistan were accused of ball-tampering by Australian umpire Darrell Hair and the team’s subsequent protest led to the forfeiture of the match, a unique event in 128 years of Test cricket.

“I am very happy with the support I have received over the last three or four years as captain,” the 37-year-old added.

Inzamam confirmed he would continue to represent Pakistan in Test cricket, but felt there were enough plenty of candidates around to replace him in the position of captain.

“I don’t think it will really be a big challenge to find a replacement for me,” he said.

“We have some good senior players and players with a lot of experience. They will do better than me and achieve greater things than me.”

Inzamam also issued an apology for his side’s abject performance in the West Indies.

“I want to make one thing clear that I’m apologising to all the people of Pakistan on behalf of the team, but we did everything we could and we have let you down,” he said.

“We tried our best. We gave it our best shot, but I am afraid the result did not come out the way that we planned, and once again, all I can say is that I am deeply sorry to my country.”