Will Pucovski has played his final professional cricket match, forced to medically retire aged just 26.
9News Melbourne’s Tom Morris reported on Thursday night the decision was made several months ago, but will shortly be formalised contractually by Cricket Victoria.
Pucovski’s retirement comes as little surprise. He has had a history of head knocks, and hadn’t played since his most recent from a Riley Meredith bouncer in March.
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He’s also been open about his battle with his own mental health, and even took an extended break from the game in 2022.
Pucovski hasn’t made an appearance at pre-season training, instead travelling overseas.
Touted as a future batting prodigy, Pucovski played just the one Test for Australia – against India in 2021. He made 62 and 10.
His 36 first-class matches, Pucovski scored 2,350 runs at 45.19 with seven hundreds.
“As a batter he flourished at a young age, making back-to-back double tons for Victoria,” Morris said.
“This confirmation is not just sad for him and Victorian cricket, but also Australian cricket.”