Indian pacer S Sreesanth is getting ready for a long and arduous road towards redemption with lessons in mental conditioning from Michael Jordan’s former trainer Tim Grover.
Read - Struggled to pay bills, was scared of the dark: Sreesanth on battling depression, suicidal thoughts
Sreesanth said he is keeping no stone unturned as he gets up as early as 5am to attend online mental conditioning classes from noted NBA physical and mind training coach Tim Grover, who has also worked with Kobe Bryant.
“Grover was one of the biggest names in NBA,” Sreesanth told PTI in an interview.
“I attend Grover’s online sessions from 5.30 am to 8.30 am thrice a week. In the afternoon, I train from 1.30 pm to 6 pm at the indoor nets in Ernakulam with a lot of Kerala U-23 players and Ranji Trophy players like Sachin Baby.”
Read - He’s still unplayable: Kerala’s Sachin Baby cannot wait to have Sreesanth back in Ranji Trophy squad
Having served seven years of suspension for his alleged involvement in the 2013 Indian Premier League spot-fixing scandal, one of India’s most talented swing bowlers is now gearing up to wear the whites for Kerala again but that’s just a part of his goal.
When asked if he will register his name up for IPL auctions in 2021, he said: “I will put my name for sure if I am performing well, which I think I will.”
“There are teams which will be interested and I have always told myself that I will again play IPL. That’s where I was thrown out and I will make sure I am back on that platform, win matches,” said the 37-year-old, who has 169 wickets from 90 international games for India.
The scars are still there and he wants that platform back, own that stage and get closure for a harrowing seven years of his life.
“The only place through which I can give an answer is through IPL even if I play for India. I want to face the fear and that’s the only way to live life,” he said.
“Most of my fear was about what would people say when I play my next cricket match. I am sure all those people will realise what I went through and who are behind it.
“Everything will come out sooner or later. I will make sure that I have that much performance to get picked,” Sreesanth asserted.
Sreesanth said he is training four and half hours daily to get back into rhythm.
“I am bowling three hours for six days a week. First two hours with the red ball and final hour with the white ball. So, I guess around 12 overs I am bowling every day to build stamina. The aim still is to play for India, not just win Ranji and Irani Trophy,” said Sreesanth.
A lot has changed in the past seven years and World Cup-winning pacer said he might not trust people the same way.
“You know, nobody asked me this question and come to think of it, it’s making me emotional. Yes, I will still like to trust people may be not blindly. I now know, where I should be seen and with whom. I have forgiven people but not forgotten anything.
“But come to think of it, trust is a very under-rated word. Take ‘T’ out of Trust and all you have is rust. You need to trust people. I was told in my dark days, I will see nobody around me. But those who gave that theory were wrong.
“Irfan Pathan called me, Harbhajan Singh checked my well-being and actors from Malayalam film industry, politicians cutting across party lines, everyone wished well.”
He acted in four movies—two Bollywood, one Malayalam and one Kannada movie for which he got the Best Villain award.
“I had to earn money since I wasn’t playing cricket. I had a family to take care of, pay EMIs and bills. So I earned through movies and kept afloat. But for next five years, it’s just cricket,” he said.
Despite facing many challenges, Sreesanth said he never faced depression.
“People confuse between loneliness and depression. When I was granted bail and walked out of jail, on flight back home, I had promised myself one thing—I won’t cry in front of my parents. I didn’t,” he said.
“I see people are saying, that please talk to others. I see it differently. Talk to yourself. It’s a process of self discovery. Read a lot. I tried to gain knowledge of Vedas, read malayalam literature, my father has an amazing collection.”
Sreesanth said he is open to playing any format.
“I am ready even if I die while playing one game.
“Of course I will play everything.
“I am not finished yet. You will see me bowling again. Tough times don’t last but tough men do,” he said.
(with PTI inputs)
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