Former Canada captain Navneet Dhaliwal has announced that he will retire from international cricket following his side’s final match of the ICC T20 World Cup against Afghanistan in Chennai on Thursday. Dhaliwal confirmed his decision after Canada’s defeat to New Zealand, which ended their hopes of advancing to the Super Eight stage of the tournament. Dhaliwal’s departure will mark the end of an era for Canada, as he has been one of the pillars of Canada’s rise in the T20 format over the past decade. 

"I took the decision before I came here. I've been playing for more than 12 [11] years now. So it was planned and this is going to be my last match," Dhaliwal said, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo. 

Dhaliwal is set to finish as Canada’s highest run-scorer in T20Is. He led Canada in 29 T20Is and 4 ODIs, guiding the team to 21 victories, all of them coming in the T20 format. Among his most memorable moments is Canada’s first-ever appearance at a T20 World Cup. In that historic match, Dhaliwal produced a captain’s performance, top-scoring with a commanding 61 off 44 balls.

"Yeah, the best memory was when we first qualified for the [2024 T20] World Cup. After that, I scored in the opening game of the World Cup last time. Also when I became a captain, that was a proud moment for me. So yeah, those few [memorable] moments," Dhaliwal said.

Post his international career, Dhaliwal is looking forward to transitioning into coaching. 

"I'm thinking of coaching but not at the national level, my priority would be the youngsters. That's something that would give me happiness. It's hard to leave cricket right away and once cricket is in your blood, it's very hard to stop playing. So, my next goal is to help the youngsters to take the next step," Dhaliwal said.