Late last September, Luke Pomersbach announced he was taking a break from all cricket for “personal reasons”.
With disciplinary action looming after skipping a Western Australia practice match — another in a long line of painful indiscretions — the middle-order batsman, it came to light, was battling depression. He was going away from cricket, he said, for the sake of his own well-being.
Ten months after his last competitive cricket match — the 2011 IPL final with RCB — Pomersbach has returned to the sport, one he maintains he still loves.
The road to redemption may be a rocky one, but the 27-year-old avers he is “on top of things” now. The dauntingly muscled Pomersbach spoke to the press at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium here on Wednesday.
Excerpts:
The break: When you play a lot of cricket, sometimes you need a bit of a break and need to start thinking about other things in the life. There were a few things off the field that I needed to deal with and I have done that.
I have seen a couple of specialists and I am right on top of things now. I am looking forward to the next stage of my career. It was just a bit of a break and it freshened me up.
Dealing with his troubles: Some people deal with these problems better than others. Some people deal with them badly and make the wrong choices in life.
Unfortunately, I went down that path and made a few bad decisions. But I've learnt a lot from them and I suppose I've got that experience.
But there are probably a lot of other guys with off-field issues, people who have stresses with their family or people passing away in their life or things happening.
You shouldn't even think about cricket when serious issues like that come up in your life. I suppose I've just got to get back to enjoying my game and look forward to my next game.
The IPL: It's fantastic to be a part of this, particularly for someone who doesn't have much international experience. It is great to be around guys like Chris Gayle, AB de Villiers and Daniel Vettori.
I reckon it is the best learning curve in the world. Hopefully, an opportunity will arise during the tournament and I'm ready to grab it with both the hands.
Moving to Queensland from WA: I've got a few good friends over in Queensland. I suppose it is good to take yourself out of an environment you have been in for so long.
Western Australia is a great place and I would probably go back there at the end of my cricketing career. For the time being, I need a little bit of change. I should have probably done it two or three years ago.
Staying match-fit: I do a lot of batting with my batting coach. I love it; I enjoy it so much so whenever I get the opportunity I have a hit with my batting coach or my best mate Shaun Marsh.
Fitness-wise, I do a lot of boxing as well. It's the best thing for batting because you've got to be sharp, have quick hands and quick feet. That's what batting is all about.
