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It was something I felt I needed: Nat Sciver-Brunt on taking mental health break
Follow UsThe vice-captain of England decided to step away from the game after the Commonwealth Games in 2022 to focus on her mental health
One of the most experienced all-rounders in the women's circuit, Nat Sciver-Brunt has revealed the reasons surrounding the need for her to take a break and focus on her mental health after England's below-par performance in the Commonwealth Games last year.
The vice-captain of the side led the team in Birmingham after Heather Knight was ruled out of a hip injury but failed to inspire the home team to the summit clash.
In a conversation with BBC, the 30-year-old revealed that the pressure of playing professional cricket got the better of her and said, "It was something I felt I needed because of the six months to a year before."
"Everything, not built up, but it did get on top of me a little bit. I spoke to a clinical psychologist a couple of times and tried to reflect on especially the Commonwealth Games and how that went and how that affected me, which was probably the main trigger for needing to go home," she said.
She missed the home series against India in September before rekindling with the squad in December for their away series against West Indies.
Reflecting on her time at home, she added, "I did things that had been on the to-do list for a year. Just be happy at home, do normal things, mow the lawn, and take the dog for a walk. I have got a bit more perspective from it, and I am able to not recover from things but just deal with things that come my way."
Nat Sciver-Brunt has been at the forefront of England's fortunes for over a decade and will play a crucial role for the home team in their bid to regain the Ashes series starting June 22.
"Since the 2022 Ashes in my mind, I have felt closer to Australia than I have before in terms of skill. It is just whether we can do it in the pressure moments."
"In tournaments, it goes the same. We do really well, and there's a pressure game ending in defeat, and from that, you learn, but you don't get to learn because the tournament has finished," she concluded.
England will host Australia in a multi-format series consisting of one Test, three T20Is, and three ODIs from June 22 to July 18.