Trent Boult
Trent Boult (Credits: Twitter)

New Zealand fast-bowler Trent Boult has left the cricket world utterly surprised by deciding to be released from New Zealand Cricket’s (NZC) central contract. NZC confirmed the decision on Wednesday (August 10), stating that the star pacer is no more a centrally contracted player.

The main reasons behind Boult’s decision is to spend more time with his family and be available to play in domestic leagues around the world. And while Boult’s glittering international career is still not over, NZC have made it clear that the star pacer won’t be given priority over the centrally contracted players. It won’t be very surprising if Boult does not play too many games for New Zealand now.

Trent Boult
Trent Boult (Credits: Twitter)

“This has been a really tough decision for me and I’d like to thank NZC for their support in getting to this point,” Boult said.

“Playing cricket for my country was a childhood dream and I’m so proud of everything I’ve been able to achieve with the Black Caps over the past 12 years. Ultimately this decision is about my wife Gert and our three young boys. Family has always been the biggest motivator for me and I feel comfortable with putting it first and preparing ourselves for life after cricket,” he added.

Cricket world reacts to Trent Boult’s decision:

Trent Boult’s decision has definitely left the cricket world absolutely shocked. The left-arm pacer is currently the No.1 ranked ODI bowler. He has been one of the best all-format bowlers in the world for nearly a decade now. So far, Boult has taken 317 Test wickets, 169 at ODI level, and 62 in T20I cricket.

Meanwhile, the cricket world did not take too long to react to Trent Boult’s decision. As soon as NZC confirmed the news, fans and experts took to Twitter to give their reactions. Most of the fans and experts have opined that cricketers will follow Boult’s path in the coming days due to franchise cricket.

Here are some of the reactions: