London [UK], June 7 : Spinner Sophie Ecclestone has decided to take a break from international cricket to manage her well-being ahead of India's tour of England, set to begin later this month.
According to ESPNcricinfo, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said Ecclestone was available for selection for the India series, featuring five T20Is and three ODIs. However, she decided to take time out to deal with a minor quad injury along with her well-being.
"Sophie has been managing a quad niggle over the past week but more importantly she wants to take a step back from cricket for a short period to look after herself," Charlotte Edwards, England Women's head coach said as quoted from ESPNcricinfo.
"We're totally behind that. We want to be able to select Sophie for the India series but the most important thing for her at the moment is that she feels in a better place. We all agree that a break now could be beneficial for her to achieve that," Edwards added.
Ecclestone wasn't included in England's ongoing West Indies series as she was recovering from a knee injury. Last month, on the day of the squad announcement, she was playing for Lancashire in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup.
Since then, Ecclestone has made eight appearances across all formats, scalping 14 wickets, including 4/12 against Surrey in the T20 Women's County Cup final. Last Sunday, she registered figures of 2/24 in Lancashire's Vitality Blast victory over Durham.
In Ecclestone's absence, Linsey Smith clinched a five-wicket haul on her ODI debut against the West Indies. Ecclestone's decision comes in the aftermath of a turbulent period for England. They were thrashed 6-0 by Australia in the Ashes.
After the Ashes defeat, Jon Lewis left the head coach position and was replaced by Edwards. Heather Knight stepped down from the captaincy role.