Will Pucovski announces retirement from all forms of cricket

Will Pucovski, 27, has announced his retirement from all forms of cricket after what he's called a "difficult year".

The Victoria batter, who played one Test match for Australia, had a career punctuated with concussions, the last one coming in a Sheffield Shield match in March 2024, when he retired hurt after being hit on the helmet by a Riley Meredith bouncer.

"I'm not going to be playing cricket again," Pucovski told SEN Radio on Tuesday (April 8). "It's been a really difficult year, to put it as simply as possible. The simple message is, I won't be playing at any level again.

"In the couple of months post that (last concussion) I struggled to get anything done, walking around the house was a struggle. My fiancee was annoyed because I didn't contribute to chores. I was sleeping a lot. From there it's been a tough year, a lot of the symptoms didn't go away, which has led me to this decision. The first few months were horrendous, but things didn't leave me."

Last year, an independent medical panel recommended that Pucovski retire from the game.

"In my head, I didn't want to make an official call until I was symptom-free," Pucovski said. "When you're struggling it's hard to make a huge decision. The medical panel recommended I retire and that was really difficult to come to terms with. I felt like I was coming over the hill with a few things.

"Technically you can't make anyone retire from anything...it got made clear to me it was a strong recommendation, but the final decision ultimately was up to me.