'Made wrong friends, devoted less time to practice': Prithvi Shaw reflects on his downfall

Prithvi Shaw vanished from the cricket scene like he never existed. Once touted to be the next big thing in Indian cricket, Shaw, who was making headlines much before he led India to the Under-19 World Cup title in 2018, reflects on his downfall. The right-handed opener was all over the news and internet for his dashing Test debut hundred against West Indies in Rajkot; however, he still maintains that popularity across both platforms, but for all the wrong reasons now. Although the then India coach Ravi Shastri called him a fusion of Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, and Brian Lara, Shaw is nowhere close to what those cricket giants achieved by his age now.

Shaw, however, admitted to being distracted during his steep rise early in his cricket journey, which saw him make 'wrong friends' and decisions, triggering his career collapse. Once a promising opening batter, Shaw also revealed that cutting down on cricket practice from eight hours to four hours a day also aided his downfall.

Meanwhile, Shaw endured a tough time both on and off the field last season. Barring the off-field controversies that put his name in a bad light, Shaw suffered blows related to cricket as well. After Mumbai dropped him from the playing XI in the Ranji Trophy over poor form, fitness and disciplinary issues, Shaw found no place in their Vijay Hazare Trophy squad as well.

To make things worse, none of the 10 IPL teams bid for him at the last mega auction in November 2024. Besides, Delhi Capitals (DC), Shaw's previous IPL franchise, also decided against retaining him ahead of the mega auction.

“There are a lot of things. It is different for people to see. Because I know what has happened. I can understand it. I have taken a lot of wrong decisions in life. I started giving less time to cricket. I used to practice a lot. For example, I used to bat for 3-4 hours in nets. I never got tired of batting. I used to go to the ground for half a day. I admit that there was a distraction,” Shaw said in a chat with News24.

“After that, I started considering what was not necessary as necessary. I made some wrong friends. Because I was at the top at that time. Friendship is also formed. Then they took me here and there. All those things. Then I got away from the track. I used to give 8 hours of practice on the ground. Now it is 4 hours,” he continued.

Meanwhile, Prithvi Shaw’s international career includes five Tests, six ODIs, and one T20I for India. He will now represent another state team in the Ranji Trophy after receiving the required No-Objection Certificate (NoC) to leave Mumbai cricket.