New Zealand great Ross Taylor bids adieu to international cricket

New Zealand’s Ross Taylor returns to the pavilion after playing his final innings in international cricket at the Seddon Park in Hamilton on 4 April, 2022.AFP

An emotional Ross Taylor was given a standing ovation as the New Zealand great made an emotional farewell to international cricket on Monday after 16 years at the top.

The visiting Netherlands team gave the 38-year-old a guard of honour as he came out to bat at number four in the third one-day international at Seddon Park in Hamilton.

He was dismissed for 14, but the day belonged to Taylor, who announced in December that the series against the Netherlands would be his last hurrah.

New Zealand won the match by 115 runs after bowling out the Dutch team for 218 in 42.3 overs.

With his children on one side and teammates on the other, Taylor was in tears before the match as the players lined up for the national anthems.

The Seddon Park spectators rose to their feet and applauded generously as he came to the crease for the final time.

Taylor bowed out of Test cricket in style in January, taking the last Bangladesh wicket to ensure New Zealand won the second Test in Christchurch and drew the series.

Taylor has been a mainstay in the New Zealand batting order since making his debut in 2006, amassing a plethora of records and achievements.

Among them are a New Zealand record 7,683 Test runs and he also scored the most runs for the country in ODIs.

He also made the highest Test score in Australia by a visiting player -- 290 at Perth in 2015.