Melbourne Stars announced Tuesday that their skipper Meg Lanning will continue her indefinite hiatus from cricket and will miss the eighth season of the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL). “Melbourne Stars captain Meg Lanning will continue her cricket break indefinitely and will not play for the Melbourne Stars in WBBL08,” the club said in a statement. The club respects her decision and asks to continue to respect her privacy. Earlier in August, Lanning had announced that she would retire from cricket indefinitely due to personal reasons.
Lanning had just helped her team complete a successful campaign of the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, in which the Aussies took gold after beating India by nine runs in the final. She stepped back from the game after a busy two and a half years with Australia continuing their dominance by winning T20I and ODI World Cup events and the Ashes series at home.
The 30-year-old has not set a timeline for her return, but has received support from Cricket Australia.
“We are proud of Meg for recognizing she needs a break and we will continue to support her during this time,” Shawn Flegler, CA’s Head of Performance, Women’s Cricket was quoted as saying in a statement.
“She has made an incredible contribution to Australian cricket over the past decade, delivering remarkable achievements both individually and as part of the team, and has been a brilliant role model for young children.”
“The well-being of our players is always our number one priority, and we will continue to work with Meg to ensure she has the support and space she needs,” concluded the Head of Performance.
In a written statement, Lanning had said: “After a busy few years, I have made the decision to step back so that I can devote time to myself. I am grateful for the support from CA and my teammates and ask that my privacy will be respected during this time.”
Lanning made her international cricket debut as an 18-year-old in 2010, establishing herself as one of the top hitters for her side and the women’s ODI as a whole. She scored a century in her second ODI, becoming the youngest Australian ever in an international competition. This was one of many hundreds that followed.
Since taking over the captaincy in 2014, she has led Australia 171 times, behind Ricky Ponting and Allan Border.
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Lanning has represented the Melbourne Stars team in 54 games. In these matches she scored 1,805 runs at an average of 41.97. Her best individual score for them is 97*. 18 half century have been scored by Aussie star for Melbourne Stars.
The eighth season of the Women’s Big Bash League will begin on October 13.
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