Shaw went unsold in the IPL 2025 auction.
When Prithvi Shaw made his international debut against the West Indies in a Test at Rajkot, he drew comparisons with the great Sachin Tendulkar. Shaw was just 18 years old and looked to have so much time when he played his shots. To add to that, he also had a very easy-on-the-eye batting style that the Mumbai maidans had drilled into their young players.
Shaw made a 134 in his debut innings. It helped India post a total of 649/9 declared and crush the Windies by an innings and 231 runs.
For the next Indian Premier League (IPL) season, the youngster was retained for INR 1.2 crore. He was the mainstay for the franchise until 2021. The franchise kept faith in him despite a doping ban in 2019 by the BCCI that could’ve wrecked any young player’s career.
He also returned from the ban, playing 10 matches across all formats for India. He was a vital part of the Delhi Capitals (DC) side that reached the IPL playoffs in 2021. But soon enough, he was in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. His form tailed off in the IPL. His weight gain and ‘attitude problems’ were being discussed more.
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People within the BCCI and the Mumbai Cricket Association were openly discussing his fitness issues. Mumbai’s T20 captain, Shreyas Iyer, had at one point said Shaw has to ‘get his work ethics right’ to be considered for selection in all formats. IPL franchises also unceremoniously looked past him in the auction last November.
Shaw, meanwhile, was working on his body and mindset as the league went on. In an interview with News24, Shaw revealed that his lifestyle habits had caused a slump in his fitness levels and his form on the pitch.
“Im a big foodie. I didn’t have control over it. I don’t have interest in junk food like Pani Puri or Vada Pav. But I used to eat a lot of food at once and take a nap or something. If I didn’t train for a while, the weight gain used to be evident,” Shaw said.
Shaw’s loss of form was evident from his declining numbers for DC. He averaged just 13 from eight matches and 24.75 in the 2024 edition. Eventually, he was left out of the playing XI halfway through the season.
Even though he played in Mumbai’s victorious Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024 campaign, he was axed from the longer format squads. Recently, he sought a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from Mumbai to move to another domestic side.
“Around 2023, I also struggled to get sleep. I used to fall asleep around 2-3 am everyday. Because of that, you could see me bloated around that time. But after I developed a proper routine, things start falling in place,” Shaw said.
“In the next few months, I’m sure I will be back to being fit and much leaner,” he further added.
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