Pakistani cricketer Bismah Maroof has announced her retirement from international sport.

Maroof, who is a former captain of the team, amde the announcement through a social media post on Thursday.

“For 17 years, cricket has been not just a sport but a passion, a dream fulfilled and a journey of growth beyond measure,” she wrote.

“With a mixture of emotions, I bid farewell to the incredible journey of representing Pakistan on the international stage,” she added.

She added that she would be available for league cricket and would make her country proud.

A left-handed batswoman, Bismah made her ODI debut against India in 2006 and her T20I debut against Ireland in 2009. She went on to represent Pakistan in 276 international matches, the most by any Pakistan women cricketer. She has scored 6,262 international runs, including 33 half-centuries, and has taken 80 international wickets with her right-arm leg-spin.

During her illustrious career, Bismah was part of the women’s team that won the Gold Medal twice in the Asian Games, in the 2010 and 2014 editions.

The southpaw also captained the side in 96 international matches. She represented Pakistan in four editions of the ICC Women’s 50-over World Cup (2009, 2013, 2017, and 2022), captaining the team in the 2022 edition held in New Zealand. In T20Is, Bismah featured for Pakistan in eight editions of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup (2009, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, and 2023) and led the side in the 2020 and 2023 editions held in Australia and South Africa, respectively.