Which cricketer scored a double century then got dropped?

Answer 1

Actually, there have been several instances of a player scoring a double century and then not playing again.

The first player this happened to was Andy Sandham of England, who made 325 runs (at the time a World Record) in a match against the West Indies at Sabina Park, Kingston, from the 3rd to the 12th April 1930 (it was a timeless match, and the result was a draw agreed to by both teams after England needed to leave to catch the boat back home) and never played again. However, this was in his first innings of the match; in the second he managed to get to 50.

Another player to score a double century in his last Test Match was William 'Bill' Ponsford, who made 266 and 22 in his last match.

In March 13 1969, Seymour Nurse joined the club, with 258 against New Zealand in not only his final match, but his final innings.

Aravinda de Silva became the newest addition on July 22nd 2003, when he made 206 in an innings victory against Bangladesh in what was his final appearance.

Perhaps though, the most surprising addition on the list is Jason Gillespie of Australia, who rounded off his batting career with an unbeaten 201 against Bangladesh on April 16 2006. Gillespie was actually a pace bowler, and came in as night watchman.

Of the available candidates, we know that Sandham and Gillespie were dropped, yet the other three may have chosen to retire at their own accord.

However, interestingly enough if the trio of Michael Clarke, Ricky Ponting and Jacques Kallis all decided to retire from test cricket (as of 12/02/2012), then all three would finish their careers with a double century in their last matches.