Former India cricketer and coach Ravi Shastri advocates life ban around spinner Yuzi’s revelation that he was hung from a 15th-floor hotel balcony by an inebriated fellow cricketer during the 2013 IPL as “shocking,” adding that if such an incident occurs now, the person involved should be “given a life ban” and “sent to a rehab centre as soon as possible.”
Currently playing for the Rajasthan Royals, Yuzi’s revelation detailed a harrowing event during IPL 2013 in Bengaluru on Friday, in which he was dangled from a high-rise hotel balcony by an inebriated bully cricketer, leaving him “sort of fainted.” Coach Ravi Shastri advocates life ban on such perpetrators.
Yuzi’s revelation is from his final year with IPL club Mumbai Indians at the time, before joining Virat Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) for a long spell that concluded after IPL 2021. Yuzi’s revelation about the anonymous cricketer infuriated his followers, who asked that the Indian cricket authority take swift action against the perpetrator.
“It’s not a humorous subject in the least. I have no idea who this individual is. He wasn’t aware of his surroundings. If that’s the case, it’s a major concern since someone’s life is on the line. It may be amusing to others, but it is not amusing to me “On Saturday, Ravi Shastri advocates life ban whiles speaking to espncricinfo T20 Timeout.
“It demonstrates that the person who is attempting to do so is in an unsuitable state. And when you’re in that state and trying something new, the possibilities of making a mistake… the chances of making a mistake are even higher. As a result, it is completely unacceptable “Shastri added.
Chahal stated that this was the first time he was telling the story. “I never told anyone about this. This was from my time with the Mumbai Indians in 2013. In Bengaluru, we had a match. Following that, there was a get-together. So there was a player who was quite inebriated; I won’t name him. He was really drunk, and after staring at me for a long time, he simply called me outside and hung me from the balcony.
“And my hands were around him, like this (behind the neck). Had I lost my grip, I was on the 15th floor. Suddenly many people who were there came and they handled it. I kind of fainted, they gave me water. So this was one incident where I felt I made a narrow escape. Had there been the slightest of mistakes, I would’ve fallen down,” the 34-year-old Chahal continued. Former India coach Ravi Shastri advocates life ban on the perpetrators in such events.
When asked if he had ever seen anything like Yuzi’s revelation, in his long tenure as a professional cricketer, Shastri replied, “Never, ever. This is the first time I’ve heard something so shocking, and it’s not amusing. If that happened today, I’d say give the guy involved a life sentence and transfer him to a rehabilitation centre as soon as feasible. Allow him no more access to a cricket field. Then he’ll see how amusing it was.”
Sensitization, player education, and bringing such instances to the authorities’ attention, according to Shastri, are all essential.
“You don’t want an unlucky situation to wake you up… if anything like this happens, you’ve got to step up and tell the people involved, just like the anti-corruption unit tells you when someone approaches you about mending something. It is your responsibility to approach the authorities and inform them of the situation; else, you will be penalised. That should be the case with anything like this as well ” Ravi Shastri advocates life ban in such cases.
