Jason Ratcliffe, the Surrey and former Warwickshire batsman, has announced that he will retire from first-class cricket at the end of the season because of a persistent knee injury.

Ratcliffe, 33, made his debut for Warwickshire in 1988 and emulated his father David who played for the county as a batsman between 1957 and 1968. He was a member of Warwickshire's NatWest Trophy winning side in 1993 and helped them to win the County Championship in 1994 during their treble-winning season.

Ratcliffe joined Surrey in 1995 and completed a full set of domestic titles during his eight seasons, winning further winners medals in the County Championship (twice), National League and Benson and Hedges Cup.

He scored more than 6,500 runs in 136 first-class matches, including five centuries, and he also made more than 100 one-day appearances and he scored 53 and took four for 44 in his final first team outing in a Norwich Union League match against Essex at Guildford.

Knee injuries prevented Ratcliffe from playing any first team cricket last season and a recurrence of the problem has forced him to call time on his career.

Jason Ratcliffe, stated:

"I have been fighting my knee problem for two years and it has now got to the stage where I cannot get through a season or through the day-to-day rigours of county cricket. I have been fortunate enough to play county cricket for 15 years and to have played in some very good winning sides during that time."

Keith Medlycott, Cricket Manager stated:

"It is very sad that Jason has not been able to recover from his serious knee injury. He has worked extremely hard in the last two years to try to regain his fitness but unfortunately his knee hasn't improved enough for him to continue his career in cricket. Jason was extremely popular with everyone at the Club and has been one of the key players that have made the team so successful in the last seven years. I am sure that everyone would want to join me in wishing him all the very best for the future."

© Surrey CCC