Former India World Cup-winner Shreevats reacts to Stokes’ decision to take break
Former India Under-19 World Cup winner Srivats Goswami doubts that any Indian cricketer would dare to talk about mental health. His tweet came after Ben Stokes took an indefinite break from the game.
Star England all-rounder Ben Stokes took an indefinite break from cricket on Friday (July 31) for his mental well-being and to heal his finger issue. The continues stay in bio-bubble has been tiring for players as they have to spend ample time away from their families.
Stokes, who was named in the Test squad for the first two matches against India, has now been withdrawn. Stokes’ decision to pull out comes as a big blow for the Joe Root-led side ahead of the much-awaited series. But the all-rounder has the England Cricket Board’s backing.
Reacting to Stokes’ decision to take an indefinite break, Shreevats Goswami took to Twitter and doubted if any Indian cricketer would dare to speak up about it. A member of the Virat Kohli-led U-19 team which won the World Cup in 2008, Goswami wrote: “With Ben Stokes & other athletes/cricketers now taking breaks for #mentalhealth & their well-being (rightly so) I wonder if any of us in india would ever dare to speak up,kyuki “log kya kahenge”(how will people react).In fact this is still a taboo in to talk about it.”
He is one of the senior members of the Bengal cricket team and has been part of Royal Challengers Bangalore, Rajasthan Royals and Kolkata Knight Riders. He now plays for Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Talking of Indian cricketers, skipper Virat Kohli has had talked about mental health. “You know when you get to the international stage, every player that’s in the squad needs that communication – that ability to speak out. I think what Glenn has done is remarkable. I have gone through a phase in my career where it was the end of the world. In England 2014, I just didn’t know what to do, what say to anyone, how to speak, how to communicate. I could have said that I am not feeling great mentally and need to get away from the game. But you never know how that’s taken,” he had said at a presser in 2019.
Sachin Tendulkar had also talked about dealing with anxiety and had said: “I felt anxiety for 10-12 years, and had many sleepless nights before a game. Later on I started accepting that it was part of my preparation. Then I made peace with the times I was not able to sleep at night. I would start doing something to keep my mind comfortable.”
As for Stokes, it remains to be seen if he makes his comeback for T20 World Cup and Ashes 2021. The Ashes 2021 is scheduled to be played in Australia in 2021/22 and the players will once again have to spend ample time away from home.
