The 39-year-old, however, is not walking away from the game entirely. Born in Portugal, Henriques is now eligible to represent the country and is expected to feature in the upcoming World Cup Qualifier.
Henriques leaves Australian domestic cricket as one of its most decorated players. The right-handed batter is the most capped domestic player in Australian cricket history, having made 420 appearances for New South Wales across formats and the Sydney Sixers in the Big Bash League.
Despite receiving interest from other BBL franchises after the Sixers opted not to offer him a new contract, Henriques chose not to move elsewhere. Remaining loyal to New South Wales, he decided it was time to focus on the next chapter of his life.
“I have been very fortunate to call cricket my job for the past 22 years as a professional athlete. I had interest from other BBL teams, but it just didn’t feel right to go elsewhere,” Henriques said, as reported by Cricinfo.
“I think it’s time for me to call stumps on my career and start looking forward to the next chapter of my life,” he added.
Henriques will also be remembered as a Sydney Sixers legend. He featured in all 15 seasons of the Big Bash League and holds the record for the most appearances in the competition with 154 matches.
During his Sixers career, Henriques scored 3,324 runs and claimed 22 wickets, helping the franchise win three BBL titles. He was part of the inaugural BBL-winning team in 2012 and played a starring role in the final against the Perth Scorchers, scoring 70 runs to earn Player of the Match honours.
Later that year, Henriques was also part of the Sixers squad that won the Champions League T20. He shared the dressing room with stars including Steve Smith, Brad Haddin, Nathan McCullum, Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc.
