I Didn’t Step Out Of My Room Much: Prithvi Shaw Opens Up About the Cough Syrup Fiasco

Swashbuckling Indian opener Prithvi Shaw may be just 21-year-old but he has already seen unimaginable highs and lows in his brief career.

The diminutive young opener from Mumbai was hailed as the next big thing in Indian cricket due to the truckload of runs he scored in domestic cricket at such a young age.

Prithvi Shaw led the Indian U-19 team to World Cup glory in 2018 and it was only a matter of time before a call-up to the national team came about.

He did not disappoint when he finally got a chance to represent his country as he scored a blistering Test hundred on debut against the West Indies in Rajkot in late 2018.

Shaw was selected for the Australian Test series Down Under but his tour ended even before the series started as he suffered an ankle injury while fielding in a warm-up fixture.

Prithvi was immediately ruled out of the series and to make matters worse, a few months later, he tested positive for a banned cough syrup.

The Delhi Capitals skipper recently opened up about the ordeal he faced during that time.

“Till New Zealand tour I was in a happy space. Basically, I was feeling okay, and then I did decently in IPL too in 2020. 2018-19 Australia series was something I was really looking forward to. And then suddenly this ankle injury happened. The physios and team management were trying to keep me ready for the third Test, but the recovery progress stopped after a point. I was in a lot of pain, and was really sad. But these sort of things keep happening, and this is what the players and support staff tried to explain me.” said Prithvi Shaw during a chat on CricBuzz.

‘I was worried about my image’- Prithvi Shaw

Shaw revealed that it was his father who had suggested the opener to take the syrup after he was down cold and cough during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

The right-hander admitted that he erred by not consulting his physio. He continued taking the syrup for a couple of days, and on the third day, he tested positive during the test.

Shaw revealed that he was concerned about his image and in the immediate aftermath of the incident, he proceeded to go to London where he avoided getting out of his room.

“After I came back, I started my treatment and played the IPL. But then this cough syrup controversy came up. I think dad and I are responsible for it. I remember we were playing the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in Indore and I was down with cold and cough at that time. So I had gone out for dinner and was coughing a lot. So I spoke to my dad. He asked me to take the cough syrup available in the market. What I did wrong was did not consult the physio, which was wrong on my part,” he added.

“I took that syrup for two days, and on the third day I had my dope test. So that’s when I was detected positive for a banned substance. That was a really difficult phase for me, and can’t even express in words. I was worried about my image, and what would people think about me. That is when I went for London, to stay away from all this. There too, I didn’t step out of my room much.” Prithvi Shaw added.

Prithvi Shaw endured yet another tough phase post his comeback from the backdated ban as his technique was exposed against the moving ball during IPL 2020 and the succeeding pink-ball Test in Australia.

He was subsequently removed from the Test team but since then, the Mumbai opener has made a comeback of sorts.

The 21-year-old smashed in excess of 800 runs in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and led his team to the title glory. He had amassed more than 300 runs at a blistering strike rate in IPL 2021 before the tournament got suspended due to multiple Covid positive cases across four different franchises.

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