Prithvi Shaw: The rise and fall of the wonder boy of Indian cricket

Last month, Rishabh Pant became the most expensive player in the history of the Indian Premier League (IPL) as he was signed by Lucknow Supergiants for Rs 27 crore (£2.54 million) in the mega auction in Saudi Arabia.

But the news of Pant’s Delhi Capitals teammate Prithvi Shaw remaining unsold attracted more attention.

Those in a position to bid in the auction included Sourav Ganguly and Ricky Ponting, who were closely associated with Shaw during his years with the Capitals, as well as Rahul Dravid, who was the coach when India played under Shaw. Under-19 World Cup was won under. In 2018.

His disinterest was telling. Shaw could not find any buyer.

Ironically, just nine months ago, ahead of the start of the 2024 IPL season, it was Pant whose career looked to be in danger.

He suffered multiple life-threatening injuries in a horrific car accident in December 2022. But showing strong will, great determination and self-discipline, Pant fought back from a situation that seemed to be a dead end for his career.

Pant bravely faced the challenges of IPL 2024 and performed excellently and made a quick comeback in international cricket. He was part of the T20 World Cup winning team. Having dominated the domestic season, he impressed in the domestic Duleep Trophy, paving the way for a sensational comeback to Test cricket. He created a stir on the field by scoring a explosive century against Bangladesh.

Meanwhile, Shaw is moving from one crisis to another under pressure after some poor IPL seasons.

His poor form in IPL 2024 led to him losing his place in the playing eleven midway through the season. He also lost his place in the Mumbai Ranji Trophy team due to low scores in the current domestic season. And the outright rejection in the IPL mega auction has brought his career to a premature end.

This is a major decline for the 25-year-old, who was being touted as the ‘next big thing’ in Indian cricket not so long ago.

Shaw came into the limelight in November 2013 at the age of 14 when he scored 546 for Rizvi Springfield in the Harris Shield, a prestigious school cricket tournament. This was the world’s highest score in minor cricket at that time.

India’s most famous cricketer Sachin Tendulkar had retired just a week earlier and Shaw was immediately compared to the maestro.

Tendulkar’s spectacular progress after his world record 664-run partnership with Vinod Kambli in a school game in 1987 had inspired some of the Mumbai batsmen, especially. Shaw was one of them.

Shaw, a short and strong opening batsman, did not have the technical ability that Tendulkar possessed even in his teenage years. But he had a knack for timing and attacked the bowlers with such aggression that the selectors were immediately charmed.

He took to first-class cricket quickly like Tendulkar, scoring centuries on debut in the domestic Ranji and Duleep Trophy, leading to stark comparisons between the two.

In late 2018, he received a Test call-up against the West Indies. Shaw scored 134 runs in just 154 balls with the help of rifle-shot drives, cuts and pulls. He was barely 19 years old. Among Indians, only Tendulkar scored his first Test century at a young age.

Shaw, considered a worthy successor to Tendulkar and Virat Kohli, had the world at his feet. But since then he has been on a slippery slope.

Six years after his sensational debut he played only four more Tests. Add in six ODIs and one T20, and it still makes for a disappointing total of international performances for a batsman whose burst had promised a long, glittering career.

The unfortunate foot injury, which saw him sent back from the Australia tour in 2020, was the beginning of Shaw’s problems. Later that year, he tested positive for banned substance And was lucky to escape with a light sentence. After this his batting form began to decline steadily, with him rarely touching the heights of excellence to impress the selectors.

Meanwhile, stories of Shaw’s entanglement also came to light. wild parties And Beating Started spreading. By the middle of IPL 2024, he was seemingly on notice. After the IPL 2025 mega auction, his career seems to be surrounded by uncertainty.

Injury, illness and poor form can derail even the best, but those close to Shaw suggest bad luck has played only a small role in his uncertain decline.

Ricky Ponting, who worked closely with Shaw as Delhi Capitals coach, says: “There’s only so much (advice) you can give and only so many times you can try (to sort him out) ).”

Former India batsman Pravin Amre, who was the assistant coach of Delhi Capitals, was more direct. “Prithvi’s inability to handle IPL fame and money has been disastrous for him. I have spoken to him many times, given him examples of this.” Vinod Kambli “Who ruined their careers due to lack of discipline,” Amre told a national daily.

The IPL has revolutionized the lives of young players, providing a platform for talent and livelihood. Still, the challenges of quick success, quick fame and fast money remain pressing. Rahul Dravid has drawn on his experience as Under-19 and India A coach to stress the need for strong junior-level guidance to keep players on track. Shaw’s struggles underscore the importance of his insights.

Only time will tell what Shaw’s future holds.

Even at the age of 25, age is on his side. But Indian cricket is rich with talent and competition for places is intense. The route from here is completely uphill.

“Some of the greatest sports stories are comeback stories, if Prithvi Shaw had good people around him who cared about his long-term success, they would sit him down, tell him to get off social media and focus on being super. Will train the backside fit. This will get him back on the right track where past success can come back,” former England captain Kevin Pietersen posted on Twitter.

For Shaw the message is clear. Salvation is in his own hands.

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