AUS vs NZ: Aaron Finch receives guard of honour from the Kiwis on his swansong

Australian skipper Aaron Finch walked out for a final time in the 50-over format against New Zealand in Cairns on Sunday. Unfortunately, there was no substantial contribution on his swansong as he was dismissed by veteran Kiwi pacer Tim Southee for just five runs. The Aussie walked off to loud applause from the home crowd.

The Australian white-ball skipper announced his retirement from ODI cricket on Saturday, revealing that the final ODI of the three-match series against New Zealand will be his last outing in the format. The decision came after a series of lackluster performances by the explosive batter, which saw him register five ducks in a calendar year, the most by an Aussie batter.

Finch received a guard of honour from the Kiwi team as a mark of respect from the nemesis. New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson shook the Australian's hand and patted his back as he made his way through to the crease. But his last innings in the 50-over format did not pan out as he would've expected as he missed a straight delivery from pacer Tim Southee, which rattled his stumps.

The official Twitter handle of the Australian team shared a video of the Kiwis standing in line to give Finch a guard of Honour, which said, "Classy stuff from the Black Caps as Aaron Finch makes his way to the middle."

Classy stuff from the Black Caps as Aaron Finch makes his way to the middle #AUSvNZ pic.twitter.com/LMawJThq7t

— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) September 11, 2022

The crowd at the Cazaly's Stadium stood up to appreciate the contributions of one of their most prolific batters in the format as Finch finshes his ODI career with 17 centuries to his name, the third most by an Aussie in the format. 

While he won't be seen in Australian colours in the longer format of the game, the flamboyant opener will continue with his role in the T20I side and will lead Australia in the upcoming T20 world Cup commencing next month in Australia. It might be his last major tournament with the Men in Yellow as Australia looks to defend their T20 title.