England [Images] fast bowler Steve Harmison announced on Thursday he was retiring from one-day cricket, three months before the World Cup. Harmison, 28, decided to suddenly quit after being left out of England's 16-man squad for the upcoming triangular series with Australia and New Zealand [Images], the last tournament before next year's World Cup in the West Indies [Images].
"After careful consideration and having taken advice from several people who have been close to me throughout my career, I have decided to retire from one-day international cricket with immediate effect," Harmison said in a statement released by the England and Wales Cricket Board.
"This has been a difficult decision but I want to play at the highest level for as long as I can and believe that concentrating solely on Test cricket is the best way forward for me during the next phase of what will hopefully be a long England career."
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