AS he prepares to walk away from the international game, West Indies superstar cricketer Andre Russell says he is at peace with his decision.

The 37-year-old all-rounder, simply called Dre Russ by some fans, is set to bring the curtain down on his West Indies career this week — nearly 15 years after making his international debut in a Test match away to Sri Lanka.

While that match in Galle was the Jamaican’s lone outing in the Test arena, he debuted in One-Day International (ODI) and Twenty20 (T20) cricket in 2011 and developed into one of the most revered players in the white-ball game.

Russell told the Sunday Observer that the mounting challenge of managing chronic injuries forced his hand, even though West Indies Head Coach Daren Sammy might have wanted him to continue up to the T20 World Cup set for India and Sri Lanka from February to March 2026.

“I’ve been struggling with knee injuries and back stiffness for a while now. Fans don’t always know these things but we have to go out there as professionals and do what we have to do,” he said on the eve of tonight’s opening farewell T20 contest against Australia at Sabina Park in Jamaica.

The second T20 — Russell’s send-off — is to be staged on Tuesday, also in Kingston, before action in the five-match series swings to St Kitts for the remaining three clashes.

“I respect international cricket so much that… I can’t see myself on the field not moving like I’d want to move and then still be on the field,” Russell, also nicknamed Superman because of his remarkable athleticism in his prime, said after training on Friday.

“I don’t think Sammy would be happy with the decision but, to be honest, he understands. He wanted me for another World Cup but looking at how my body feels, struggling with so many injuries, taking painkillers just to come and practice, I just think that’s a lot on the body,” he said.

Sitting on the cusp of international retirement, Russell noted that he could shut it all down within the next couple of years.

“I don’t think I’m gonna be playing [franchise leagues] for long after I stop playing international cricket either because it’s just waking in the morning and feeling like ‘Oh, I have to do this again,’ it’s a matter of that,” he explained.

A sought-after player in franchise leagues because of his big-hitting prowess, aggressive pace bowling, and electric fielding, Russell won the ICC T20 World Cup with West Indies in 2012 and 2016.

He said managing his workload as he winds down will not only help to extend his playing career but give him the chance to spend more time with his four children.

“Maybe another two years [of playing franchise cricket] and I’m going to be selective as well — you have to manage your body… spend some time with my kids. But it all depends on how the body feels,” he told the Observer.

He has played 84 T20 Internationals, tallying 1078 runs at an outstanding strike rate of 163.08 and a top score of 71. He has claimed 61 wickets in the format.

Russell last played an ODI in 2019 — a format in which he featured 56 times for West Indies, compiling 1034 runs at a strike rate of 130.22 and a best of 92 not out. He took 70 wickets in ODIs.

He said there is lingering disappointment that injuries prevented him from doing more in the international game.

“I would have been more grateful if I had some more runs — maybe another 1000 international runs and maybe another 50 wickets — added to that tally,” he noted.

“But it is what it is — two-time World Cup champion and I can walk around and say that I’ve made the people of the Caribbean proud twice,” Russell beamed.