Miffed at Twenty20 axe, Hall quits cricket

DURBAN: South African all-rounder Andrew Hall has quit international cricket after being overlooked for the inaugural Twenty20 World Cup.

South African Cricketers Association (SACA) chief executive Tony Irish said the 32-year-old Hall's decision has come as a surprise.

"Usually, I'm aware of what a player is thinking and they consult me. But this came out of the blue. I was told today by Cricket South Africa about the resignation and immediately contacted Andrew. He made it clear to me that his decision was not open to debate.

"I told him that I was concerned about the way he had handled the matter and said I was disappointed with his attitude," Irish was quoted as saying in 'Pretoria News'.

Hall, who played 21 Tests and 88 ODIs for South Africa, is currently in England playing for Kent and the county's coach Graham Ford also felt that the all-rounder may have been miffed at his omission from the twenty20 squad.

"He felt he had done a lot to cement his place in the national team and had received an improved contract from Cricket South Africa. I can only assume that he was reacting to the bitter disappointment of being left out of the World Cup [Championship] squad," he said.