Meg Lanning, who just led Australia to the gold medal at the Commonwealth Games in addition to their T20 and ODI World Cup victories in 2020 and 2022, won’t be able to play for Trent Rockets in the Hundred. The WNCL kicks off Australia’s domestic season in late September, followed by the WBBL in October.
The following series for Australia will be an away T20I series to India in the middle of December before they host Pakistan in January before the T20 World Cup in South Africa.
After a hectic year with the Australian team, which won the T20I and ODI World Cups as well as a home Ashes series, she takes a sabbatical. Cricket Australia fully supports the 30-year-old’s choice to take a break from the sport and has no set comeback date for her.
Lanning said in her statement, “After a busy couple of years, I’ve made the decision to take a step back to enable me to spend time focusing on myself. I’m grateful for the support of CA and my teammates and ask that my privacy is respected during this time.”
Australian cricket officials have come in support of her decision. Shawn Felger, Cricket Australia’s head of performance, women’s cricket issued a statement in favour of Meg, she said, “We’re proud of Meg for acknowledging that she needs a break and will continue to support her during this time. She’s been an incredible contributor to Australian cricket over the last decade, achieving remarkable feats both individually and as part of the team, and has been a brilliant role model for young kids. The welfare of our players is always our number one priority, and we’ll continue to work with Meg to ensure she gets the support and space she needs.”
Lanning made her international debut in 2010, and at age 21 she was appointed captain the following year. With 135 triumphs, she has steered the squad in 171 games across all forms. She has only missed five international competitions since 2017.
