India middle-order batter Shreyas Iyer is back in the thick of things again after a lengthy injury lay-off which threatened to end his international career.
The 28-year-old went under the knife for a serious nerve issue which kept troubling him for a long time befire he finally had the surgery in London.
Iyer described in detail about the exact issue and how much time it took to slowly recover from the injury.
Facing Nerve Issue and Surgery
"To be precise, I had this nerve compression. Basically a slip disc was compressing the nerve, and the pain was going all the way down to the bottom of my tiny toe.
"I had this issue for a while, but I was taking injections and I was going through various routes to see to it that I am steady and playing many more matches. But it reached a saturation point where I realized that, okay, now I have to get a surgery.
"After the injury, I went back home. I was hospitalized for two days. I gave myself rest for like, almost 10 days. And in that period, one of the doctors had come to check my toe strength.
"He said that you can manage, but at the same time, the surgery will also be required. So I thought the best decision would be to get the surgery done because I have a long years ahead to play and yeah, I'm truly happy with my decision," Iyer said on BCCI.tv.
Navigating Through Pain and Panic
The Mumbai-born cricketer than described how he started to panick when the pain didn't subside immediately and how his family and friends calmed him down during that time.
"It was a rollercoster ride. The pain was there until three months, and then after that it started subsiding.
"When you are going through rehab as a professional athlete, it is tough when the pain is not subsiding. Thankfully, I had a great set of friends around me and support staff and also my family. They were the ones who calmed me down in this situation.
"I was panicking as well but the patience is the key at this point of time. So yeah, I am truly happy to be where I am right now because I never imagined that I would recover so fast," Iyer said.
Triumphant Return to the Squad
The right-hand batter hasn't played any cricket since March when he last featured for Team India. But now he is back and straightaway inducted into the Asia Cup 2023 squad.
Iyer will be expected to play a big role in the middle-order, especially if he bats at No. 4, but he's confident of doing well now that he's back in the squad.
"I am thrilled to be back. Feels ecstatic and to be honest, to join the team & see all the happy faces. I am happy being right now and I'm ticking all the boxes. My preparations really good. The compassion shown by all players was fantastic," Iyer said.
