10 players who ended their career with an Ashes series

The Ashes is one of the most coveted trophies in world cricket. It is generally regarded as a great stage to make a career and a name for oneself. But there have been players whose careers got over (retired or got dropped) after an Ashes series.

So here’s a look at 10 players from both England and Australia who finished their careers after an Ashes series.

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#10 Sir Don Bradman (1948)

With a jaw-dropping career Test average of 99.94, Sir Donald Bradman is perhaps the greatest ever batsman to have walked on this planet. 29 hundreds (out of which 12 were converted into double tons), 13 fifties and 6996 runs in 52 Tests matches – these are staggering numbers.

Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, Bradman was the world's master cricketer, so far ahead of everyone else that comparisons became pointless.

Bradman though didn’t have the best of starts to his career as he scored 18 and 1 in his debut Test in the first Ashes Test in 1928/29, but he came back strongly later in the series scoring a couple of hundreds (in the third and the fifth Test).

But his debut series was just a glimpse of what he could do. In the return Ashes series in England in 1930 saw him shatter numerous record (making a few as well).

He scored 974 runs (the most in a Test series) in 7 innings at an average of 139.14, helping Australia regain the Ashes.

Not only in 1930, Bradman haunted England in every Ashes series. He played 37 Tests against England and scored 75% of his career runs against them. His 5028 runs in Ashes cricket is the highest by any player.

In 1948, he played his last Test against England where he needed to score just 4 runs to finish with a Test average of 100, but he fell for a second ball duck. But his last Test series was also a brilliant one, where he scored 508 runs capping off a staggering career.

#9 Graham Gooch (1995)

Graham Gooch

For a cricketer who scored a plethora of runs in all forms of the games he played in, Graham Gooch had a rather sedate Ashes record. He is one of those rare England cricketers who debuted and played his last game in the Ashes.

He started with a pair on debut against in the 1975 Ashes and a string of low scores continued against Australia. It was only his 15th Ashes innings, he managed to score a fifty but inconsistency continued till the 1985 Ashes. But since that Ashes, he scored more than 400 runs in every Ashes that he played (except his last series) – including 673 in the 1993 edition.

He could never score big in the Ashes and it was maybe the pressure of the big stage which got the better of him. In a two-decade long career, he was a part of 10 Ashes series and played 42 Tests scoring 2632 runs at an average of 33.32 – a record he would like to forget.

#8 Glenn McGrath (2007)

Glenn McGrath

Glenn McGrath wasn't the quickest or the canniest ever, but in a career spanning over 14 years, he had the simplest of methods to get wickets - bowling tidy lines and lengths boringly hurled in an infinite loop outside off, until either the batsman's technique or his temperament yielded. He finished his career with a staggering 563 Test wickets – the most for any fast bowler.

After a sedate debut in 1993 against New Zealand, McGrath began his Ashes career moderately as well picking up 6 wickets in the 1993-94 Ashes at home. But he wreaked havoc in his second Ashes series scalping 36 wickets in his first series in England including a bowling performance in an innings - 8/38 at Lords.

And that series in 1997 set a trend in every Ashes he played. He picked at least 19 wickets in every Ashes series he played ending up with 157 wickets in 30 Ashes games. In fact, his momentous 500th wicket also came in an Ashes Test (Day 1 of the Lord’s Test in 2005).

He finally hung his boots after avenging the 2-1 Ashes loss with a ruthless 5-0 whitewash in 2006-07, where he bid farewell with a wicket off the last ball he bowled.

#7 Shane Warne (2007)

Shane Warne

When Shane Warne made his debut against India in 1992, one wouldn’t have presumed the tremendous potential the chubby leg-spinner possessed. But the 1993 Ashes turned everything for him.

With his first ball in the Ashes marked as the ‘Ball of the Century’, Warne grew in confidence as he scalped 34 wickets in his debut Ashes series and turned around a disastrous start to his career.

Warne just loved the big stage of the Ashes and England was also his favourite opposition. His stats also justify that. 195 wickets (most in the Ashes history) in 36 games at an average of 23.25 are some staggering numbers.

Some of his record-breaking stats have come in the Ashes. 600th wicket in the famous 2005 Ashes where he picked up 40 wickets and then his 700th wicket at the MCG (his home ground) in his farewell series (2006-07 Ashes). He helped Australia regain the Ashes in his last series ending a brilliant career.

#6 Steve Harmison (2009)

Steve Harmison

At 6'4 tall, Steve Harmison has the potential to extract bounce and pace from the wicket. Many have compared him to the West Indies great Curtly Ambrose. He made a quiet start to his international career but really picked up as the time went by.

His Ashes record isn’t a one to boast off. He always played the role of a support bowler. Like his career, he started his Ashes career sedately picking up 9 wickets in 4 Tests in the 2002-03 Ashes in Australia. But one performance stood out and it came in the famous 2005 Ashes where he tore apart the Aussie batting line-up with 5/43 on the first day at Lords.

Apart from that, the tall lanky pacer didn’t have any notable performances in the Ashes. He played 17 games in the Ashes picking up 45 wickets at an average of almost 42. He retired in 2009 after England regained the Ashes with a 2-1 series win at home.

#5 Andrew Flintoff (2009)

Andrew Flintoff

For a player who averaged 31 with the bat and 32 with the ball in Tests, people would tell you that he was a decent all-rounder. But the hype and the attention Andrew Flintoff managed to gain was simply due to his sheer ability to inspire England against all odds. He had the ability to turn games quickly with both bat and ball.

Flintoff played his first Ashes (in 2005) only 7 years after his Test debut. And he was one of the main reasons why England could regain the Ashes for the first time since 1987. He had a wonderful series – 402 runs at 40.2 and 24 wickets at 27.29!

Unfortunately, Flintoff played only in 3 Ashes series’ as his career was crippled with a series of injuries. But he managed to surmount the energy for a final burst as he played an important role when England regained the Ashes in 2009 and pulled down curtains on an impactful career.

#4 Kevin Pietersen (2014)

Kevin Pietersen

Kevin Pietersen is a box-office player. He is a player who draws the attention of the world, no matter what he does. From his outrageous self-confidence to the shot that he has invented (the Switch Hit), to the flashy style of dressing or the relentless attempts to get under the opposition's skin, KP has done it all and has been pilloried for it as well.

And it all started in his debut series (the 2005 Ashes) when he replaced Graham Thorpe. He announced himself with a bang! 473 runs at an average of 52.56 – playing a key role in England’s first Ashes triumph since 1987.

He slowly became the crux of England’s batting line-up. His overall Ashes numbers are impressive as well - 2158 runs at an average of 45. But a poor 2013-14 Ashes Down Under and a whole lot of controversies led to his axing in 2014. He has never played for England since and the ECB has ruled out a return as well.

#3 Chris Rogers (2015)

Chris Rogers

A typical Test opener, Chris Rogers didn’t have a flashy, aggressive or eye-catching game, but it was his patience, grit and determination which made him stand out. Making his Test debut at the age of 30 against India in January 2008 it looked like he would end his career with a solitary Test to his name. But the selectors recalled him for the 2013 Ashes in England.

That series kick-started his career. A very good series in England in that 2013 Ashes (where he scored 367 runs) helped him cement his spot. He continued his good form playing a vital role in helping Australia regain the Ashes in the 2013-14 season as he scored 463 runs with 2 hundreds and 3 fifties in five Tests.

At the end of the 2015 Ashes in England, he announced his retirement. He played only 25 Tests, but 15 of those came in the Ashes. And he has scored 1310 runs at an impressive average of 48.52. Also, 4 of his 5 Test centuries have come against England.

#2 Brad Haddin (2015)

Brad Haddin

Playing in the same era as Adam Gilchrist meant that Brad Haddin was forever playing second fiddle to the Aussie great. But with the legend's retirement, Haddin emerged from his shadows and carved a niche for himself in Australia's young side. Haddin made his ODI debut way back in 2001 but had to wait until 2008 to claim a place in the Test side (becoming Australia’s 400th Test player).

From 2009 to 2015, Brad Haddin played in every Ashes series. His Ashes numbers are very good and they were better than his career numbers. In 20 Ashes Tests, he scored 1366 runs at an average of 41.39. In the 2013-14 Ashes at home, he was one of the unsung heroes for Australia as he scored 493 at a brilliant average 61.63. He scored 5 fifties and 1 century in the 8 innings he batted.

In the 2015 Ashes in England, he played only one Test before he had to return home due to family reasons. He eventually called time on his career at the end of the series.

#1 Michael Clarke (2015)

Michael Clarke

As a batsman who had enormous ability and ambition, Michael Clarke emerged in Australia's golden years, was with them through the troughs that followed, and eventually led them back to the No.1 Test ranking.

He was an inspirational leader and an architect of some of Australia's famous wins.

He was a prolific scorer in the Ashes throughout his career. Out of the seven Ashes series he played, he scored more than 350 runs in five of those (2005 and 2015 being the exceptions). He scored 2241 runs at an average of 40.75 against England.

His stats and average dipped in his last 15 Ashes innings where he couldn’t manage to get a single 50+ score. After a series of injuries, poor form and a disastrous Ashes in England in 2015, Clarke bowed out with a win at The Oval.