Didnt see this comming.
Cricket Australia- News Display - Cricket Australia
Express paceman Shaun Tait will sit out of cricket indefinitely due to physical and emotional exhaustion, Cricket Australia revealed on Tuesday.
In a statement released by Cricket Australia, Tait said an absence from the game would 'hopefully give me a clear mind and a chance for my body to rest and recover'.
No time frame on a return to cricket has been placed on Tait, who will sit out Friday night's KFC Twenty20 clash against India in Melbourne and the upcoming Commonwealth Bank Series. He will also be unavailable from interstate duties for South Australia.
"This is a very difficult situation for me to be in at this time, this is not an overnight decision but something that I've been struggling with for sometime," Tait said.
"A break from professional cricket will hopefully give me a clear mind and a chance for my body to rest and recover."
"My love and enjoyment of the game is struggling due to these issues and if I continue to go on it will be unfair on my team-mates and support staff of both the Australian and South Australian cricket teams - and most importantly my family and close friends."
"The continued success of the Australian cricket team is important to me and I wish my team mates every success in the coming Twenty20 game and the Commonwealth Bank Series."
Tait had shoulder surgery following the 2005 Ashes series and also went under the knife to repair an elbow injury last year.
That, according to South Australian Cricket Association medical officer Terry Farquharson, led to Tait also suffering 'ongoing pain as well as suffering intermittent low back and hamstring injuries'.
"The combination of his injury history and the demands of being an elite professional cricketer has affected his physical, and significantly, his emotional well being," Farquharson said.
"Shaun feels he needs a rest from cricket and I support this, which will allow him to recover both physically and emotionally."
Cricket Australia's chief medical officer Dr Trefor James agreed, saying a break from all forms of cricket would do Tait good.
"We'll be working with Shaun going forward to ensure that whatever assistance he requires is provided to him. Shaun's personal welfare is our primary concern as well as his return to cricket at an appropriate point," he said.
The SACA said it would support Tait.
"Shaun is a much respected and admired member of the Redbacks squad," said chief executive Mike Deare.
"Professional sport can place huge demands on young sportspeople. We respect Shaun's decision and will assist him and his family in every way possible to allow him to recover both physically and emotionally."
"We reiterate his request for his privacy to be respected so that Shaun can return to cricket at an appropriate time."
Tait, who bowled with distinction earlier this summer in the Chappell-Hadlee Series against New Zealand, was left out of the XI for the fourth Test in Adelaide after going wicketless in the side's loss to India in Perth.
He played as recently as Sunday in Traralgon when he rocked Victoria's middle order, grabbing three wickets in South Australia's defeat to the Bushrangers in a Ford Ranger Cup match.
