Cricket Australia set to appoint 'Mental Health and Wellbeing Lead' for players

Many international stars have addressed the issue of mental health in recent times. From Virat Kohli to Glenn Maxwell– several well-known players have opened up about their experiences with mental issues like depression and anxiety.

Talking about Cricket Australia (CA), several players along with Glenn Maxwell, have laid out their mental health issues over the past few months. Their struggle with mental health has also led to them withdrawing from playing cricket for a temporary period. These players include the likes of Glenn Maxwell, Kate Hall, Nic Maddinson, and Will Pucovski.

In the wake of such instances, Cricket Australia, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, has recently opened a new position titled ‘Mental Health and Wellbeing Lead’.

It’s crucial for us to provide the right support for our players: CA High-Performance Chief

“The new Mental Health and Wellbeing Lead will give a greater focus on mental health at Cricket Australia, giving us an individual resource dedicated to this area. The role will also provide broader case management support for CA contracted players,” Drew Ginn, High-Performance Chief at Cricket Australia said as quoted by Hindustan Times.

Drew Ginn also spoke about how the Mental Health Lead will provide further assistance to Michael Lloyd and Peter Clarke, who are currently serving as sports psychologists for Australia’s men and women teams.

“It will provide further reinforcement to our current psychologists working with our teams. To have a dedicated leader in a national role and having them focus on a national strategy, policy, future partnerships, critical case management and support for players and states is a positive step forward for the sport.

It’s crucial for us to provide the right support and environment for our players, coaches and staff, and this builds on fantastic work being done by Michael Lloyd and Peter Clarke,” added Ginn.

Meanwhile, Cricket Australia, like all major cricketing boards, has been suffering due to the absence of international activity due to COVID-19 outbreak. The much-awaited T20 World Cup in Australia is also on the verge of postponement.

The pandemic has also wreaked havoc on the financial aspect as CA had to terminate a total of 200 employees between April and June. Furthermore, former Chief Executive, Kevin Roberts, also had to part ways with the cricket body.