Bangladesh pacer Marufa Akter has opted out of the upcoming Women’s NCL T20 after deciding to take a break from cricket following a busy run of international assignments.
A Women’s Wing official of the Bangladesh Cricket Board confirmed the decision after Tuesday’s player draft for the eight-team tournament.
Marufa was initially listed as the icon player for her division Rangpur, but she will not feature in the competition as she looks to manage her workload. Bangladesh are scheduled to tour Australia for a three-match ODI series in Brisbane from October 9 to 14.
“Marufa was on our icon list, but she won’t be a part of the tournament. She wanted to take some rest as she has been playing continuously across formats. Our physiotherapist also suggested that she take rest,” the official told TIMES.
The right-arm pacer has been playing regularly since April, featuring in a series of international assignments across formats.
She first played two white-ball series against Sri Lanka at home before joining Bangladesh for the tri-nation series in Scotland ahead of the Women’s T20 World Cup. Marufa then featured in five matches at the World Cup and played four more matches during the Women’s Asia Cup.
Her most recent assignments came at the Asian Games, adding another stretch of matches to an already busy schedule.
The Women’s NCL T20 will begin on October 31, with all matches scheduled to be played in Cox’s Bazar.
