'Made wrong friends': Prithvi Shaw passes honest account on downfall; adds 'was mentally prepared' for IPL snub

Prithvi Shaw passes honest account on downfall

Prithvi Shaw, who was once hailed as the next great thing in Indian cricket, is no longer considered for the national senior team. The batter was not even included in Mumbai's Vijay Hazare Trophy team, and he was also left out of playing XI for the Ranji Trophy. That was not the end of Shaw's misery as he went unsold at the high octane IPL mega auction. And now after several months, the 25-year-old also requested Mumbai Cricketer Association (MCA) of NOC, which has been granted.

“There are a lot of things. It is different for people to see. Because I know what has happened. I can understand it. I have taken a lot of wrong decisions in life. I started giving less time to cricket. I used to practice a lot. For example, I used to bat for 3-4 hours in nets. I never got tired of batting. I used to go to the ground for half a day. I admit that there was a distraction,” Shaw told News24, giving an honest account on his downfall in cricket.

“After that, I started considering what was not necessary as necessary. I made some wrong friends. Because I was at the top at that time. Friendship is also formed. Then they took me here and there. All those things. Then I got away from the track. I used to give 8 hours of practice on the ground. Now it is 4 hours,” he added.

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Shaw also disclosed that he was also sidetracked by a family issue. He talked candidly about his depressive state following the death of his grandfather. “There are a lot of things. It's not just that. I had a family problem. My grandfather had passed away. He was very dear to me. There are a lot of things that I can't tell you. But I can feel it.

“I admit my mistakes. But my dad has always supported me. No matter how bad my time was. He has seen good and bad,” he added.

No senior player contacted him during his slump said Shaw, who has previously shared the dressing room with players like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Nonetheless, he said that Rishabh Pant had kept touch with him the entire time. Shaw added that he was "mentally prepared" and not surprised when no IPL team selected him in the IPL mega auction.

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"I am on track now. I have gone back to basics now. The hard work I used to do five years ago, I think I have started that routine again. I believe in myself. I don't know how many people believe in me or not. But I believe in myself. I know how to get there. That's why I am doing all this," said Shaw.

“But one thing that dad has said. Only Prithvi Shaw can bring himself back there. No one else can. So I have left everything,” he added.

Prithvi Shaw has represented India in five Test matches, six ODIs, and one T20I. Shaw made his Test debut in 2018 and scored 134 runs. Shortly after, the then-head coach Ravi Shastri remarked that the batter is a combination of Sachin Tendulkar, Brian Lara and Virender Sehwag.