Birthday Special: Marcus Trescothick – The brave-heart who battled depression

Former English cricketer Marcus Trescothick plied his impressive trade for Somerset County Cricket Club and represented England in 76 Tests and 123 ODIs. He led the Somerset team and his international side in various matches across both formats during 2010-16. The England stunner will always be known for battling his way out of severe depression and anxiety during his glorious career.

How it started

It all began in 2006 during the England tour of India when Trescothick returned home abruptly stating personal reasons and later blamed a virus. He returned to play well against Sri Lanka, but during a series against Pakistan in the same year, he withdrew from the ODIs. He stated that he should not be considered for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy due to stress-related issues. It was later revealed that he was going through clinical depression, which had troubled him since 2006.

Trescothick marked his comeback during the 2006-07 Ashes but the ECB announced that he was flying back again due to ‘the recurrence of stress-related illness.’ His uncertainty in the England squad continued for a long time, but he received a lot of support from players like Justin Langer, Alec Stewart, Mike Gatting, and Bob Woolmer. However, in the coming year, he made it clear that he would be up with his international journey. England Cricket supported him through his odd days, and he made his comeback by scoring 256 runs in 117 balls against Devon in 2007.

His class continued with the domestic team. In July 2007, he was named in the preliminary squad for the World T20 Championship in South Africa, but he pulled out again, stating that he needs more time to recover. However, in March 2008, even Somerset announced that he has decided to pull out from the season due to recurrence in his condition. He kept dealing with his condition and finally released his autobiography after having a great season with Somerset.

Trescothick named the book ‘Coming Back to Me’ and added that he had anxiety attacks since the age of 10. He continued to play domestic cricket because it meant that he is just three or four hours away from his family.

An excerpt from his book reads:

“I’ve not brought it out for people to use as a self-help book, to say this is how you cope with anxiety and depression. It’s just to get it out in the open – there have been so many questions left unanswered and I’ve not helped that process. But this is the opportunity, and I hope people can understand why I did a few things I did.”

Even after dealing with all the odds, he successfully led the Somerset team from 2010 to 2015, wherein he bagged many accolades on his name.