Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) bowler Suyash Sharma, on Thursday, opened up on his long struggle with a hernia problem, before the franchise took a call to send him to London for an operation before the start of the ongoing IPL 2025 season. Suyash has played nine matches for Bengaluru this season, picking four wickets at an economy rate of just under eight.

Speaking on RCB Bold Diaries, Suyash, who spent his last two IPL seasons in Kolkata Knight Riders before being acquired by Bengaluru for INR 2.6 crore, said that until 2023, he used to take injections to deal with the pain and play matches. However, Suyash admitted he wasn't quite aware of the issue until RCB sent him to London for surgery, where he learnt he had three hernias.

"I was very happy, absolutely happy. I knew that with RCB, I had a good chance. I had been practicing — this had been going on for two years. Until two years ago, I used to play by taking injections. We didn't know what was going on in India as we didn't know what the issue was. Then it became a problem," he said. “RCB sent me to London for my surgery. And there I had James Pipey. He and his family treated me like their own family. I had three hernias.”

The 21-year-old admitted he was unsure whether he could start the season for RCB and was told he would have to sit out for the opening four games. However, Suyash bounced back quickly as he donned the RCB jersey in their second game of the season.

"I'm telling the truth — I didn't even expect to play the first match. I was told that I should play after three or four matches because my surgery was quite major. But James took such good care of me, better than anyone else could. I'm really thankful that I came to this franchise — I became completely fit. Otherwise, I have been dealing with this issue for the past two years. I had gotten used to playing in pain," Suyash added.

Suyash's best performance thus far came against Punjab Kings (PBKS) on April 20 at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur, where he finished with figures of 2 for 26 in four overs.

RCB currently sit at the top of the points table with seven wins in 10 matches. They will next face Chennai Super Kings at home on May 3.

Read more news like this on HindustanTimes.com