TUNIS (2016 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments) - After months of deliberation, Tunisia shooting guard Amine Rzig has decided to bring the curtain down on a national team career that spanned two decades.
The 35-year-old considered helping Tunisia in this summer's FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT) in Turin, Italy (4-9 July), but recent injuries, fatigue as well as the opportunity to spend time with his young family helped him make up his mind.
The 35-year-old considered helping Tunisia in this summer's FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT) in Turin, Italy (4-9 July), but recent injuries, fatigue as well as the opportunity to spend time with his young family helped him make up his mind.
"I have already spoken to coach [Adel] Tlatli, and I think he will understand my position. I can't give any more to the team," he said to FIBA.com.
Over 20 years of my life I had great pride playing for Tunisia. It wasn't an easy decision to take, but now, I am hoping to help the team in another capacity. - Rzig
The 35-year-old competed in the AfroBasket - FIBA Africa's flagship event - six times, helping his country win the title in 2011 and qualify for the 2012 London Olympics.
Following AfroBasket 2015 held in his home country last August, Rzig felt he could have a final shot at the OQT and help Tunisia reach the Olympics for the second time in a row.
Tunisia still have a chance to qualify for the Rio Olympics if they succeed in Turin, where they will take on Croatia and hosts Italy in Group B.
"I am retiring with a sense of disappointment because we had the best two Tunisian national teams in the last AfroBaskets [2013 and 2015] but we didn't win. We didn't use our weapons to win the championships. We could well have won three African titles in a row, but things didn't work out well," he explained.
Over 20 years of my life I had great pride playing for Tunisia. It wasn't an easy decision to take, but now, I am hoping to help the team in another capacity. - Rzig
The 35-year-old competed in the AfroBasket - FIBA Africa's flagship event - six times, helping his country win the title in 2011 and qualify for the 2012 London Olympics.
Following AfroBasket 2015 held in his home country last August, Rzig felt he could have a final shot at the OQT and help Tunisia reach the Olympics for the second time in a row.
Tunisia still have a chance to qualify for the Rio Olympics if they succeed in Turin, where they will take on Croatia and hosts Italy in Group B.
"I am retiring with a sense of disappointment because we had the best two Tunisian national teams in the last AfroBaskets [2013 and 2015] but we didn't win. We didn't use our weapons to win the championships. We could well have won three African titles in a row, but things didn't work out well," he explained.
Tunisia (TUN)
"Of course I am going to miss my time with the national team, but it's about time to move on, and give a new generation a chance to play for our country. It's time to spend more time with my young family."
If Tunisia can win at least one game in the Group Phase at the OQT in Turin, they will advance to the Semi-Final where they will face one of the two teams to have advance from Group A, which consists of Mexico, Greece and Iran.
I keep telling our players: 'look we have a good team, just go there, compete and never give up'. But we are going to need to be mentally prepared in order to beat those those two teams in the Group Phase. It's not impossible. - Rzig
Asked to share his biggest moments with the national team, Rzig didn't hesitate.
"Qualifying for the [2010] FIBA Basketball World Cup, winning AfroBasket 2011 and playing at the 2012 Olympics rank at the top of my basketball achievements," he said.
"Of course I am going to miss my time with the national team, but it's about time to move on, and give a new generation a chance to play for our country. It's time to spend more time with my young family."
If Tunisia can win at least one game in the Group Phase at the OQT in Turin, they will advance to the Semi-Final where they will face one of the two teams to have advance from Group A, which consists of Mexico, Greece and Iran.
I keep telling our players: 'look we have a good team, just go there, compete and never give up'. But we are going to need to be mentally prepared in order to beat those those two teams in the Group Phase. It's not impossible. - Rzig
Asked to share his biggest moments with the national team, Rzig didn't hesitate.
"Qualifying for the [2010] FIBA Basketball World Cup, winning AfroBasket 2011 and playing at the 2012 Olympics rank at the top of my basketball achievements," he said.
By: FIBA.com
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