This Madhya Pradesh player burst into the spotlight when he took 16 runs off a Muttiah Muralitharan over in the fourth edition of the IPL to help Pune Warriors to victory.
But for Mohnish Mishra, life changed a year later when he was caught in a sting operation, indulging in what the BCCI called “loose talk” that “brought disrepute to the game.”
He ended up copping a one-year suspension from cricketing activities.
Having made a strong comeback during the 2013-14 Ranji season with 501 runs, the 30-year-old seeks to make up for lost time.
Part of the Madhya Pradesh squad that is playing Tamil Nadu here, Mishra spoke to The Hindu about his time out of the game and how he kept himself motivated.
“I am a cricket lover, and I just got my head down and kept working hard. Without cricket, my life is nothing. So I just kept my focus. Sometimes you get injured and miss a season,” he said.
Mishra said the most important thing was to accept that it was a mistake and look ahead.
“It was a tough time for me, but people like Mukesh Sahini (ex-MP coach), and teammates like Naman Ojha, Ishwar Pandey really helped me during that time,” he said.
He returned to become MP’s third-highest run-getter last season.
“I came back strongly, and could have had an even better season if I had converted few of my fifties into centuries,” he said.
As one of Madhya Pradesh’s experienced players, he sees himself as someone who can bring stability to the batting order.
When asked about a realistic target for his career, Mishra said his ambition to play for country remains.
“If you are working hard and keeping fit, age doesn’t matter,” he said.
Mishra said he hopes to play next year’s IPL, but has realised that he needs to score even more than 500 runs this season to land a contract.
