England and Delhi Capitals' batter Harry Brook has revealed the personal reasons behind pulling out from the Indian Premier League 2024 and also from the India vs England Test series. Reports were doing the rounds that Brook has withdrawn from the 17th edition of IPL but there was no official word on the same.
Now the England batter has himself confirmed the news and also explained the reason behind his extended absence from cricket. Brook shared a post on social media and informed that his pull out of IPL and the IND vs ENG Test series is due to the death of his Grandmother.
"I can confirm that I have made the very difficult decision not to play in the upcoming IPL. I was so excited to be picked by Delhi Capitals and was so looking forward to joining up with everyone," he began his statement in a photo text post on social media.
"Whilst I don’t think I should need to share my personal reasons behind this decision, I know there will be many asking why. So I do want to share this. I lost my Grandmother last month – she was a rock to me and I spent a huge amount of my childhood in her home; my attitude to life and love for cricket was shaped by her and my late grandfather.
"When at home, there would hardly be a day go by that didn't include seeing her. It makes me so happy that she was able to see me play cricket for England. I'm proud that she could collect some of the awards I have won over the last couple of years when I couldn't be there and I know she enjoyed doing that," he added.
Brook also pulled out from the five-match Test series against India. "I made the decision to leave the India Test tour the night before we flew from Abu Dhabi to India because I was told for the first time that my grandmother was ill and didn’t have long left.
"Now that she has passed my family & I are grieving and I need to be around them. Over the last few years I have learned to prioritise my mental well-being and that of my family’s, honestly nothing is more important to me than family. So whilst this may come as surprising to some, I know it’s the right decision for me. I’m young and hope to have many, many more years of cricket to come which I intend to make the absolute most of," he further added.
Brook also thanked the England Cricket Board and the Delhi Capitals franchise. "I couldn’t be more grateful for the support I have received, especially from the ECB and Delhi Capitals, thank you," he concluded. Brook also posted pictures of his Grandmother in the same post.
