No one here is saying that every person stops playing because they don't want to play any more. Sometimes people realise they aren't good enough and are forced into retirement. But you are saying every person who retires is because they are not good enough any more and are unable to play. That is just completely and utterly false.
Sometimes they want to pursue other interests in life, like coaching. When you start getting older you start enjoying teaching cricket more than you do playing it. It's crazy to think that everyone stops playing because they're not good enough any more.
Look when I talk about 'want to play' I am referring to a desire inside to play, the same desire that made the 11 year old boy take up cricket to begin with. I am sorry but I am not willing to accept that suddenly the desire has evaporated in October 2013 more than 29 years later.
I don't think after the SA series, the desire inside Ponting suddenly disappeared.
I dont't think after the 2003 world cup the desire in Wasim Akram suddenly disappeared.
Waqar Younis who is supposed to have retired after 2003 world cup was still trying to make it into the squad against India in the 2004 home series. Only when he was not given the green signal did he quietly walk away and now it is said he retired after the 03 World Cup.
My point is simple, I do not think players have a choice as some people might have suggested here. I don't think most people who retired had a choice of whether they want to retire or not,
Now it could be a number of factors - a nudge from the selectors, the fear of being dropped, lack of fitness, fear of breaking down, fear of failure, lack of confidence in ability, poor form, or career ending injuries like in the case of Shane Bond or Flintoff. So, since they didn't have a choice, the reason behind their retirement is not that they did not want to play anymore. None of these factors are really under your control, age is not under your control, so its not your choice, its not what you 'want'.
Now as with everything about human beings, there are exceptions to the rule and some people find another passion and lose their passion for cricket as a result, as is the case with Imran Khan.
However, most people have pretty much one major passion in their life, and a man can change his religion, his passport, his wife, his face, his mistress, his name, his family, his house, his car, but a man seldom changes his passion.
Now does that mean all the retired cricketers are unhappy and on the brink of depression? Of course not..maybe a few but most I am sure are adequately satisfied in whatever it is they are doing, such as coaching, or commentary or appearing on reality shows.
But I don't think this is a decision they picked
over playing cricket. This a decision they made, because they were no longer able to play cricket for a variety of reasons I mentioned earlier in the post.