Bharatiya cricket legend Lakshman Sivaramakrishnan has revealed the darkest moments of his personal life, stating that false accusations of substance abuse and drinking affected not only his career but also his personal life to the extent that no family was willing to marry their daughter to him.
In a recent interview, Sivaramakrishnan stated that he made it to the Indian team at the age of 17, but was labeled as a “substance abuser” and “drunkard” by the selectors by the time he turned 19. He claimed that these accusations were baseless and that he never used substances.
The former Indian cricketer has also revealed the instances of racial prejudice he faced during his cricket career. Sivaramakrishnan said that his parents had put up an advertisement in a newspaper for his marriage, describing him as a Test cricketer and a businessman, but after two weeks, when they opened the mail, not a single proposal was received. His reputation had been so badly tarnished that no family was willing to marry their daughter to him.
Sivaramakrishnan also revealed that after the 1987 World Cup, selectors asked him to tell the media that he was not selected due to fitness issues, but he refused to lie, and was subsequently dropped from the team.
Sivaramakrishnan, a renowned commentator, announced his retirement from commentary, citing racial prejudice as the reason. He said that after retiring from cricket, he took up commentary, but his mental health was severely affected during the COVID-19 lockdown. He confessed that he became severely depressed and started drinking to sleep. He also admitted that he had suicidal thoughts and would often see frightening visions, and would lose sleep.
Sivaramakrishnan attributed his deteriorating mental health to the constant criticism and false accusations he faced from society.
