Former Australian captain Aaron Finch has expressed his disappointment at Marcus Stoinis’ sudden ODI retirement call. The decision had left the selectors baffled for a replacement amid an injury crisis ahead of the Champions Trophy 2025.

The all-rounder was included in the provisional squad but stepped away from the format on February 06. The 35-year-old played only one ODI since Australia’s 2023 ODI World Cup victory while actively participating in the T20 format since then.

He also bagged a new IPL contract with Punjab Kings for a price of INR 11 crore who also led the Melbourne Stars in the 2024-25 Big Bash League.

Aaron Finch opined that Stoinis should not have left such a decision till so date, considering the faith that the management had shown in him.

“When you’ve had the faith put in you by the selection, the coach & the captain – maybe a little bit more of a heads up?

“Saying, ‘You know, this is what I am thinking.’ I would be surprised if it was an off the cuff decision as well, I am sure there would have been planning down the track, there would have been conversations between Andrew McDonald and Marcus Stoinis to try to get to the decision,” Finch said.

Marucs Stoinis who made his ODI debut in 2015, has played 71 matches in the format. He scored 1495 runs at an average of 26.70 along with picking 48 wickets at an economy rate of 6.

“At the end of the day, each player has the opportunity to decide what their fate is going forward. For me, if you look at Marcus Stoinis for the last couple of years, he’s preferred to play the T20 route.”

“Being in Pakistan, then straight to India after a summer of cricket at home, that can potentially be four-five months on the road, so maybe that contributed to the decision,” Finch added.

Australia have named Aaron Hardie in their white-ball squad to take over from Marcus Stoinis as the seam bowling all-rounder.

Australia will begin their Champions Trophy campaign against England on February 22 at Gaddafi Stadium.