An open letter to Will Pucovski

Hey Will,

Just a couple of days back, I scrolled through cricketing news when my eyes rested on a story.

To paraphrase, it said, ‘Highly rated Victorian batsman Will Pucovski takes an indefinite break from the game’.

Being an avid cricket fan who is keenly waiting for India’s tour of Australia, that news shocked me. As a cricketing nation, Australia has been blessed with immensely talented cricketers. From Sir Don Bradman to Michael Clarke, a number of them have become legends of the game.

When someone is tipped to join their ranks, he is ought to be special, so are you. A century and a double hundred in first 11 innings of a tournament as gruelling as the Sheffield Shield is not an easy task. You managed it.

Since the Newlands ball-tampering saga, the Australian cricket team has constantly found it tough to get results. Every heroic battle has been followed by a humbling war.

Being without two of its best batsmen has cost the team dearly and understandably, and the team is finding it tough to find their replacements. The Australian team is in a consistent state of flux. With India touring next, this can be a very long summer.

This Virat Kohli led world number one side has struggled outside the subcontinent in recent times. While their heroics of Wanderers came very late, they could not get the job done in England. With questions being asked about Kohli’s test captaincy and Ravi Shastri’s position as the head coach, India will need to get over the demons of their own.

However, if Kohli was asked to choose when to tour Australia, he would have chosen this summer. Such questions are being asked to the Australian side that most experts feel that this is India’s best chance to win a series in Australia.

(Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Stuck in a rut, there were whispers of you being called in the test fold for this summer. The Sheffield Shield is always looked as a crucial breeding ground to bring someone in the national team. With a dire need to find solutions, this Sheffield Shield is very crucial.

With you being the standout player of the first round, you came into the contention to be chosen for the test squad. But alas! It looks bleak now.

I can only imagine how you may be feeling. A player, who proved his potential when asked for, after coming close to relish his dream, got all that taken away? You may feel upset, angry or even cheated on.

But mate, it’s really good that you chose to accept what was needed by your own self, and Cricket Victoria supported you wholeheartedly.

Cricket can be a really gruelling sport, not only physically but also mentally. Periods of idleness may lead to self-introspection and over-analyzing can make it tougher. Combine this with being away from your family, comfort zone what you get is a cocktail of disastrous potential.

Take the example of football or hockey. Played with much greater intensity, there is little or no time to think beyond what’s happening on the field. More than that, footballers, while being contracted to their club have the luxury to spend the weekdays with family before turning out to work every weekend.

As pointed by Suzie Bates, cricket can well be the worst sport for mental health. While you have decided to step away from the game temporarily, your decision, with Cricket Victoria’s support is setting a very welcoming precedent.

Heaps of international cricketers, from Andrew Flintoff and Marcus Trescothick to Sarah Taylor and Jonathan Trott, dealt with anxiety issues in their own ways. You understood what your body and more importantly your head needed and took the best action you could have possibly taken.

As I look ahead to Australia’s cricketing summer, I feel bad. Based in Melbourne, I certainly want Victorian team not to miss you on the field. But hey champion, I know you will be back, much stronger and improved. Talent never goes away and you shall return, back in the contention.

Soon, we will see you wearing the Baggie Green and anchoring Australia’s middle order. Australian team may have very well found a competent replacement for Ricky Ponting. Untill then, however, it will be a waiting game.

Finally, as someone who has experienced mental health-related issues intimately, I want to wish you my best for this battle. You may feel low, have sleepless nights or get tears, but you are going to come back as a much finer version of yourself.

Just trust and take a day at a time.

What does not kill you, makes you stronger.

From,

A cricket-loving human