Time spent on wheelchair was dark: Sreesanth

Back from two career-threatening
injuries, pacer S Sreesanth says that the
months spent on wheelchair prior to his
comeback to first-class cricket were the
"darkest" of his life.
When Sreesanth led the Kerala attack in
the Ranji Trophy recently, he was doing so
after a gap of 14 months.
"Who says men don't cry? I used to sob
like a baby as I was forced to move
around in a wheelchair for two months
after twin surgeries on my toes," an
emotional Sreesanth said during an
interview from his hometown Kochi on
Friday.
"To be honest, I started thinking that
probably, I won't be able to play cricket
again. It was such a scary thought. Those
14 months were the darkest phase of my
life," he added.
Sreesanth was indebted to the support he
received from various quarters.
"After two months on wheelchair, I had to
walk around in crutches for another three
months. Thanks to BCCI, Kerala Cricket
Association and NCA for standing by me
in crisis period. The moment, I announced
that I am fully fit, Kerala CA didn't think
twice before selecting me," he said.
The maverick pacer will be playing for
India 'A' against England at the Palam
ground here on Sunday.
"This is a fresh start for me. I want to
extract every ounce of enjoyment
possible from the matches that I would
play from now on. Be it for Kerala, India
A or India, I don't want to relax one bit. I
have two platinum nails inserted in my
big toes but I have a lot of fire in my
belly," he added.
"Earlier, I used to think that there are
days where I can relax. But now I know
that life is fickle. You have to give your
hundred per cent as long as it lasts."
So what did he do during the break? The
man, who is now a month shy of his 30th
birthday, said, "As I got busy with my
cricketing commitments, I had stopped
penning my thoughts in a diary. I would
write about each day of my life during
that phase. Watch the CDs of my good
performances for India. We have a rock
band and did a bit of jamming and yes,
prayed a lot."
Has this injury forced any technical change
in his bowling, he said, "Earlier, I had a
26-step run-up to the bowling crease but
now I have reduced it to 23 steps. But I
have not cut down on my pace. Even
while playing for Kerala, I have
consistently worked up a fair amount of
pace. The only thing that I need right now
is more consistency."