“I used to call her and cry” - Ishant Sharma breaks silence on low phase after 2013 ODI against Australia

Out of favor India pacer Ishant Sharma broke his silence on a tough phase in his life in 2013. The incident had taken place during the third ODI against Australia in Mohali, where James Faulkner hit him for 30 runs off one over.

Australia were chasing 304 and needed 44 more runs from the last three overs. Ishant Sharma bowled the 48th over, where Faulkner took him to the cleaners. He went on to smash an unbeaten 64 off 29 balls as Australia won by four wickets.

The pacer revealed how he was depressed for a month after that game. He also stated that he would cry out to his then-girlfriend, now his wife, Pratima Singh.

"I went into depression for a month. Not depression exactly but I used to cry every day. I was dating Pratima at that time. I shared my feelings with her that I could not with my parents as well. She is not only my wife but like my best friend. I used to call her and cry that the team lost because of me. Then we went to South Africa. I did not play the first two one-days and played the third. I was in my shell and was not able to move on. I then thought either I cry and play or fight and play. I don't know how it clicked but I decided to fight. I picked four wickets. Then I took wickets in the Test matches as well. My mentality actually changed from there," he said on Raj Shamani's podcast.

While Faulkner had smashed him and given him a nightmare, Ishant Sharma named the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting, Matthew Hayden, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, AB De Villiers, Virat Kohli, and Rohit Sharma among the toughest batters he bowled to in white-ball cricket. He also named Steve Smith as the toughest batter he faced in Test cricket.

The pacer has bagged 311 Test wickets and 115 ODI wickets in his international career.

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"Cricket does not stop for anyone" - Ishant Sharma on India being ready without Virat and Rohit

In the same conversation, Ishant Sharma was also asked whether India is ready for the phase without Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. The pacer reckoned that cricket does not stop for anyone. He reflected that both Virat and Rohit would be aware that they would completely walk away one day.

"Cricket does not stop for anyone, right? Fans feel bad, and as an individual, you may feel bad. All that is there. But the good thing is that both of them are mature and know that is will happen at some point in time. I think the faster you understand, the better it is," he said.

Both Virat and Rohit have retired from T20Is and Tests. They stepped away from T20Is after India's 2024 T20 World Cup triumph and from Tests after the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia.

While they will continue playing ODIs, the day may not be too far away when they bid adieu to the one-day format as well.