Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore cricketer Daniel Sams has taken a break from international cricket after returning from IPL 2021. Incidentally, Cricket Australia on May 17 announced a 23-member squad for the limited-overs tour of West Indies. Among the huge squad of players, there were a couple of cricketers who went missing including Sams.
As it turns out, Sams, who had recently returned to his country from India requested the CA to keep him out of consideration for this tour due to personal and mental reasons. The 28-year-old was part of the T20I series which the Australian team played in New Zealand ahead of the 14th edition of IPL.
Daniel Sams takes a break from international cricket
As per reports, Daniel Sams has decided to skip the international tour citing mental health problems. He was a part of a couple of bio-bubbles in the last couple of months. The all-rounder also attracted COVID-19 soon after landing in India for IPL 2021. He recovered and returned to the XI, but only after two appearances, the tournament had to be called off, due to the rising COVID cases in India.
Meanwhile, this is not the first time an Australian cricketer has taken a break from international cricket citing mental health. Glenn Maxwell, Will Pucovski, and Nic Maddinson took breaks from the game which initiated a debate among the cricket fraternity about cricketers and their mental health.
Daniel Sams made his international debut for Australia in a T20I match against India in Sydney in December 2020. This opportunity had come after an impressive show for his Big Bash League franchise, Sydney Thunder. He has played in a total of four T20Is and has picked up four scalps. In addition to that, he has also scored 54 runs at a strike rate of 234.78.