‘P’ stands for Priyanka, Patience and Pyar : Well the alphabet ‘P’ might stand for many things for many, but it is ‘Priyanka’ (Raina”s wife), ‘Patience’ and ‘Pyar’ (Love) for the newly crowned skipper of the IPL franchisee, Gujarat Lions, the stylish left-handed batsman, Suresh Raina.
Raina, who fell out of favour of the BCCI selectors, post his dismal show against South Africa in the home series late last year, was dropped from the ODI squad to Australia for the five-match series Down Under, which eventually India lost 1-4.
However, Raina, being a part of the T20 squad, established his supremacy in the limited over format by being a catalyst for India to complete a ‘white wash’ of the Aussies in their own backyard by winning the series 3-0. This he did in style by hitting a boundary off the last delivery of the third and final encounter, when India needed just 2 runs for victory.
Speaking about his lacklustre show against the Proteas and his subsequent axing from the ODI squad, the stylish southpaw, speaking to Times News Network said, “Those were the down days of my life and it was a very tough phase.”
Explaining about his overcoming the negativity and the fight-back, he said “It was my wife who gave me unconditional love and support. She told me “keep playing and give your best and everything else will fall in place.” I went to meet her in Holland, and she had organised special yoga classes and training sessions for me. Her caring attitude and love gave me the extra energy to go out and prove myself all over again. Frankly, for me, the alphabet “P” stands for Priyanka, patience and pyar. That down time has taught me that come what may, my wife will always be my strength.”
Elaborating on his wife’s role in his transformation, Raina added, “Yes, Priyanka has changed me a lot. She is a bubbly, chirpy, happy girl, who has brought sunshine to my life. I have learnt humility and expression of emotions from her. Now, I”m more responsible towards myself and both our families, who are very important to us.”
Team India will be on T20 mode until the completion of the ICC T20 World Cup. They have commitments at home in the form of a three-match series against Sri Lanka, followed by the Asia Cup in Bangladesh. The prestigious ICC T20 World Cup kicks off soon thereafter.
Suresh Raina, being the batting mainstay of Team India has a very big role to play in all these engagements as run-accumulator, innings anchor, games finisher et al.
Well, Priyanka’s contribution in Raina’s comeback has, yet again, gone on to establish the old adage, “There is a woman behind every successful man.”