New Delhi: Former Indian cricketer and well-known commentator… Laxman Sivaramkrishnan Another explosive revelation has been made about his years in cricket broadcasting, alleging that he was forced to return to commentary duties shortly after his elder brother’s funeral.The former leg-spinner, who recently retired from the BCCI commentary panel citing “color discrimination”, shared the emotional incident through a series of posts on social media on Thursday.“My elder brother passed away a few years ago. We finished the cremation in the evening. Minutes later, the BCCI Director of Broadcasting called me and said, ‘Now that the cremation is over, can you take a flight to commentate the Ind vs Australia Test in Mohali the next morning?’ I’m gone,” Sivaramakrishnan wrote on X.The 60-year-old revealed that despite the personal grief, he prioritized his professional commitments.“I sacrificed mourning and left. My mother died when I was doing commentary in Pune. After doing all that, I remained subject to whatever happened,” he added.
‘That’s why I retired’In another post, Sivaramakrishnan hinted that a single person was a major reason behind his decision to step away from commentary duties earlier this year, though he stopped short of naming the person publicly.In March, days before IPL 2026, Sivaramkrishnan announced his retirement from BCCI commentary, alleging discrimination on the basis of skin color and claiming he had been dropped in favor of newcomers.The former India spinner, who represented the country in nine Tests and 16 ODIs, had earlier opened up in interviews about battling depression, anxiety and severe emotional trauma during his commentary career.
‘I thought I was going to die’In a deeply personal conversation with The Indian Express earlier this year, Sivaramkrishnan spoke about the mental breakdown he faced during the IPL in the UAE amid Covid-19.“I was completely down and I didn’t want to look at myself in the mirror,” he said. “Every time I woke up, I thought I was going to die.”He described terrifying hallucinations, sleepless nights and emotional isolation, while also alleging racism and appearance discrimination in cricket circles.Sivaramkrishnan further claimed that he was often denied high-profile on-air roles because he was considered “unpresentable”.“I’ve never done a toss or a presentation,” he previously said, adding that producers reportedly told him he was instructed not to be in those positions.The former spinner also recalled the traumatic experiences of his early cricketing days and said that such incidents severely damaged his self-esteem at a young age.
