Ireland's most-capped cricketer Kyle McCallan has announced his retirement from international cricket with immediate effect.
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Kyle McCallan interview
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McCallan in action
The 34-year-old made 226 appearances for Ireland, scoring 3616 runs at an average of 23.33 and he also took 256 wickets.
He also captained the side a record 54 times.
McCallan informed Cricket Ireland of his decision on Tuesday, saying he was ending his international career to spend more time with his family and to concentrate on his teaching career.
But McCallan admitted the decision to retire was a difficult one to take.
"When I head the sort of fixtures for the coming season and the potential amount of time required away from work, for me at my age I had a big decision to make", he told UTV.
"I have ambitions outside of playing cricket. I have ambitions to be successful in my career. I just felt it was time to spend quality time with my family and focus on my achievements off the cricket pitch."
"I could have gone on for a while yet, but with the World Cup just 15 months away, that wouldn't have been fair on (coach) Phil (Simmons), and the rest of the squad."
Ireland have made huge progress in McCallen's time, qualifying for the Cricket World Cup in 2007 and this year's Twenty Twenty competition.
The team have also become the world's top ranked associate nation.
"The World Cup 2007 as a whole was just a fairytale, a dream come true", McCallan told UTV.
"Cricket has been very good to me."
"It has just been an amazing experience and I have memories that I will cherish for the rest of my life. And I look forward to seeing them achieve great things now that my days are numbered."
© UTV News