10 Cricketers who kept the team ahead of their families

“Some people think football is a matter of life and death. I don’t like that attitude. I can assure them it is much more serious than that,” said legendary Liverpool manager Bill Shankly. That pretty much is applicable to every sport that exists and definitely in cricket. We have not just seen players talk stuff, but also live up to it over the years. The passion associated with cricket in this part of the world is what makes this sport so special. It helps these cricketers push the extra yard and also achieve stuff which mere skill can’t win you. Cricketers have always shown that extra passion for the sport, which sometimes also came at the cost of them missing out on their family duties. Here’s a list of cricketers who faced some very challenging family times during their career, but managed to put cricket above everything: 1. MS Dhoni MS Dhoni and Ziva. (Photo Source: Instagram) One of the greatest leaders of all time, MS Dhoni has managed to win the hearts of so many cricketers with his grit and brilliance. He announced his retirement from the longest format in December 2014 and concentrated completely on the 2015 Cricket World Cup. After the ODI series against Australia, although he had time to go back to India for a week, he didn’t. It wasn’t a normal scenario for MS Dhoni to ignore going back to his country. His wife Sakshi was about to deliver a baby back in India but to avoid any chances of being tired or rusty of travelling, Mahi decided to wait till the World Cup was done. Ziva was born on 6th February, but Dhoni could get a first glance at his daughter only towards the end of March. 2. Sachin Tendulkar Sachin Tendulkar. (Photo by Nick Laham/Getty Images) The 1999 World Cup gave Sachin Tendulkar the most traumatic moment of his career, as he had to cope with the death of his father. Sachin’s biggest inspiration and greatest source of motivation growing up was his father and it took a lot of time for him to recover from his demise. But what he did when he heard the news was something not a lot would do. He went back to Mumbai to attend the final rites but came back just on time for the game against Kenya. He scored one of the most emotional centuries in cricket history to propel his side to a much-needed win. Many years after the incident, Tendulkar still continues to inspire people with his dedication. 3. Virat Kohli Virat Kohli. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) A 17-year-old Virat Kohli in Delhi was playing the biggest Ranji game of his life against Karnataka in 2006. Karnataka were in a winning position against Delhi and even a miracle wouldn’t have saved Delhi from a defeat. Unfortunately for the teenage sensation, his father passed away just a few hours before the commencement of the 4th day’s play, which took his family by a shock. But the cricketer didn’t get traumatized by it and went to bat for Delhi the next morning. He scored a fantastic 90 despite Karnataka winning the game. After completing his innings, he went back and completed the final rites. This story drew a comparison to his idol Sachin Tendulkar, who too had faced a similar situation back in 1999. 4. Parthiv Patel Parthiv Patel. (Photo Source: Twitter) Parthiv Patel had a very good outing with the bat for the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 2019 edition. He was batting with a lot of confidence and relished opening regularly alongside the Indian skipper Virat Kohli. But behind the smiles this season, Parthiv had some personal tragedy to deal with. His father Ajay Patel was hospitalized during the IPL and was in critical condition for a long time. He was taking a lot of flights from his workplace to home and back with the team. Although his family offered great support while he was away playing cricket, the dedication shown by Parthiv towards the game and his family was awe-inspiring. 5. Rashid Khan Rashid Khan. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) One of the most charismatic figures in the current generation, Rashid Khan is touted as the next big thing in world cricket. The leg-spinner is bossing most of the T20 tournaments across the globe and is also beginning to stamp his authority at the International level. But during the Big Bash this season, he had some personal tragedy to deal with and he decided to keep cricket ahead of his family. While playing for the Adelaide Strikers, he learned about the death of his father. He didn’t leave to his country to see his father for one final time just to accompany his team which was in a struggle. Although some fans criticized him for not giving importance to his father’s funeral, one cannot disregard his love for the game. 6. Mohammed Shami Mohammed Shami. (Photo Source: Instagram) Back in October 2016, while India were taking on the Kiwis in a home Test series, Indian fast bowler Mohammed Shami had more than just cricket running in his mind. His little daughter was admitted in the ICU and he had to go back and forth from his work location to his home in Kolkata to take care of his daughter. His daughter Aairah was beginning to recover, but he decided to keep his cricket ahead of his family. India won that series 3-0 against New Zealand and all his teammates too were shocked to learn when they got to know he played for the country despite all of this happening. Virat Kohli said after the series that he had no idea what was happening with Shami and complimented the fast bowler for showing such spirit. 7. Ravichandran Ashwin Ravichandran Ashwin. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) During the 4th Test between India and South Africa in Delhi, where Ajinkya Rahane famously hit twin hundreds, Ravichandran Ashwin scored a fantastic fifty with the bat and stitched a fine partnership with Rahane. But as informed later by his wife Prithi Ashwin, the off-spinner had a catastrophic couple of days during the Test. There was a heavy downpour in Chennai and he was unable to contact his parents. For more than 24 hours, there was no sign of his parents and despite reading all the news of the damage the rain was causing in the city, he kept his calm and played for the country. He later got the information that his parents were safe. 8. Mohammed Siraj Mohammad Siraj and his father. (Photo Source: Instagram) Ahead of India’s tour of Australia in November and December, Mohammed Siraj received his father’s demise. Siraj was in Australia when he heard the tragic news. He stayed with the team due to strict quarantine rules that were in place in Sydney. He couldn’t make it to his father’s last rites in Hyderabad. It is understood that his father passed away due to a lung ailment. He got to know about the news after he completed his training in Sydney. He later quoted that he was shocked to hear the news and he stated that he lost his biggest supporter. 9. Brendan Taylor Brendan Taylor. (Photo Source: Twitter) Not a lot of cricketers from Zimbabwe get an opportunity to represent an IPL franchise and when Brendan Taylor got his chance, he didn’t want to let it go. He got married just before the tournament began and had a big honeymoon trip planned. But he had to postpone it to accompany the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL. Sunrisers had bought for his base price of Rs 10 lakh but he didn’t get to play a single game for them. It was the second season for Sunrisers in 2014 where they eventually finished 6th on the table. It was a tough call for Taylor to make, but his commitment to the game earned him great compliments. 10. Jason Roy Jason Roy, England (Photo by Adam Davy – EMPICS/PA Images via Getty Images) Most recent of all the stories, during the England-Pakistan ODI series just before the World Cup, Jason Roy‘s daughter was admitted in the hospital. Roy had scored a couple of half-centuries in the second and third ODIs, after which he received the bad news of his daughter getting admitted in the hospital after she was throwing up late in the night and was not conscious. He had to spend the whole night in the hospital before the 4th ODI, but went back to join the team and scored a brilliant hundred. After that game, when England confirmed their victory in the series 3-0, Roy was sent back to stay with his family.

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10 Cricketers who kept the team ahead of their families

Cricketers have always shown that extra passion for the sport, which sometimes also came at the cost of them missing out on their family duties.

8. Mohammed Siraj

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