Laxman Sivaramakrishnan Opens Up on 45 Years of Trauma, Slams BCCI

Laxman Sivaramakrishnan criticised the BCCI, saying they created false hope, as he opened up about 45 years of trauma and lack of opportunities in cricket and broadcasting.

Former India cricketer and commentator Laxman Sivaramakrishnan spoke about his recent experience with the BCCI and the years of trauma he suffered. The 60-year-old said officials contacted his friends to enquire about his well-being, instead of reaching him directly.

The development follows allegations of racism against the BCCI that led to his retirement from broadcasting. Sivaramakrishnan said the production team never gave him roles like toss or post-match presentations. He felt this was due to how he was perceived on screen.

Sivaramakrishnan also reflected on a long struggle from age 15 to 60. He revealed that the repeated experiences caused mental stress over 45 years.

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“It created a false hope. I used to wait for calls. It is what I’d faced during my cricketing career. It is what caused me all the trauma. If they were not interested in giving me work, why call my friends to check on me? I didn’t want to make the same mistake again. A sponge can only soak up to a level, after that it will break. How much more can I – and should I – take? From the age of fifteen to sixty – forty-five years. I have been traumatised by all these things. I have had enough,” he was quoted as saying by NDTV.

Laxman Sivaramakrishnan then shared a childhood experience from his early cricket days. At 14, he was working as a net bowler for India. During a session at Chepauk, a senior player asked him to clean his shoes. Sivaramakrishnan refused and later realised the player had mistaken him for ground staff.

“I just looked at him and said, ‘That’s none of my business, you just do what you need to do.’ I didn’t know what racism or colour discrimination was. I was just wondering why this man had to react like this,” Sivaramakrishnan said.

The former leg-spinner later represented India between 1983 and 1987. He played 25 international matches, including 9 Tests and 16 ODIs. He has taken 41 wickets during his career.