Former Brazil captain Roberta Moretti has confirmed her retirement from international cricket, closing a career that began in 2013 and reshaped the women’s game in her country.
Moretti, 38, bows out after 68 T20Is – more than any other Brazilian – with 1278 runs, 33 wickets and two South American titles as captain. Her decision, announced via Instagram, arrives midway through Brazil’s campaign at the Kwibuka Women’s T20 in Rwanda, where her unbeaten 41 from 49 balls on Monday now stands as her final innings.
“It has been a long journey. We had a lot of tears but now I feel the moment is right,” Moretti said in the post. “Since I started playing cricket in 2013, my dream was to represent the Brazilian national team. When I started playing for Brazil, my dream was to win championships. When we started winning, my dream turned out to be about not just winning but winning with clear values, a purpose and that we could be better people through sport. I have given this game everything, but cricket gave me more.”
Key facts first
• Debut: March 2014, South American Championship, Lima
• Matches: 68 T20Is (most for Brazil)
• Runs: 1278 (strike-rate 89)
• Wickets: 33 (economy 5.34)
• Captaincy: 33 T20Is, two regional titles
The numbers matter, yet they say little about her wider influence. A former softball convert, Moretti took up leather-ball cricket in 2013 and soon became the public face of a sport fighting for space in a football-mad nation. She featured in the first cohort of 14 women handed central contracts in 2020 – a full year before Brazil’s men received the same security.
“It was never only about a sport; it was always about growing as people,” Moretti said. “I am thrilled with every achievement for Cricket Brazil from the time we were just playing South American tournaments when we needed to sell raffles and pizzas to fundraise and compete to know where we are in an Olympic sport. Every story has a cycle, and every cycle has an ending.”
Her leadership extended beyond the boundary. After stepping down as captain in 2023 she carried on as an opening batter, coached in state schools and, last June, became president of Cricket Brazil – a voluntary position she balanced with playing duties. Few elite cricketers anywhere have combined executive responsibilities and on-field commitments quite so visibly.
Analysis – why now?
Friends say the twin roles were sustainable only while her body kept pace. At 38, and with Brazil targeting qualification for the 2028 Olympic programme, giving younger players room makes strategic sense. From the boardroom, she can now lobby for funding and schedule without worrying about mid-week net sessions.
Brazil’s head coach Matthew Featherstone (who worked with Moretti from the start) believes her legacy is secure. “The contracts, the school programmes, the national titles – Roberta’s fingerprints are on all of it,” he told local media on Tuesday. “Replacing her numbers is hard; replacing her presence is tougher.”
Looking ahead
The immediate task is the remainder of the Kwibuka tournament, where experienced all-rounder Laura Cardoso is expected to step into the leadership vacuum. Longer-term, Cricket Brazil must convert expanding junior pathways into senior depth, a challenge Moretti will now tackle behind a desk rather than in the covers.
“I’ll continue to work in cricket on the other side, so that more people have the opportunity I had to wear the Brazil jersey, play the sport they love and become better people and leaders so that they can carry Cricket Brazil with the same pride I carried in my heart for years. The most important thing in all of this is that I leave cricket still loving the game.”
Balanced to the end, that closing line sums her up: competitive, values-driven, still in love with cricket. Brazil’s next chapter begins without her on the field, but very much with her in the room.
