‘He idolised Dhoni and was a finisher like him’ KOLKATA: A 22-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman, who idolised M S Dhoni and dreamt of donning the India blues one day, collapsed and died of a possible heart attack during a friendly T20 match at the Bata ground, Maidan off Outram Road on Wednesday.Sonu Yadav, a promising middle-order batsman, who played second division professional cricket for Ballygunge Sporting Association, scored a quick-fire 12 off 5 balls moments before he collapsed. Players from both sides, including those of Abasar Cricket Club, as well as the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) officials regretted the unfortunate death of the player, but stressed it was not an official match.Sonu, a resident of Ekbalpore, was playing a strokeful innings before being caught out while attempting a shot. As he walked out of the crease, he suddenly slumped to the ground. His teammates rushed over and tried to resuscitate him.When he did not respond, they took Sonu on a bike to the CAB’s medical unit at Eden Gardens , around 1.5 km away. The doctor there referred him to the SSKM Hospital where he was taken in an ambulance, but an emergency ward doctor declared him dead. CAB doctor A Anwar Ali said Sonu’s pulse was so weak that he had immediately referred him to SSKM.“The cricketer appears to have suffered a sudden cardiac death but we will have to wait for the post mortem report to confirm the cause,” said an SSKM doctor.Niraj Kumar Nirala, one of Sonu’s teammates who plays for Abasar Club, said he had displayed no visible discomfort before the sudden collapse.Niraj recounted, “He was casually walking back to the corner where we were sitting. He stumbled once, but recovered and continued to walk. He had just crossed the boundary and was removing the helmet when he fell head forward. We sprinkled water on his face and I tried to administer CPR. When he remained still, we took him to CAB.”At Sonu’s Ekbalpore home, his father Rupesh, a tanker driver, was speechless with shock. Sonu’s brothers Amarjeet and Sandeep blamed the CAB for negligence.Sonu, who started playing at 14, was a BCom graduate from Kidderpore College. “He first played professional cricket with Mohammedan Sporting. Then he played for three years with Abasar and had signed with Ballygunge Sporting Association on November this year. He idolised Dhoni and was known as a finisher like him,” said Arsalan Mirza, a childhood friend.In January, a 21-year-old cricketer had similarly died after he collapsed during warmup in Kharagpur.Cardiologists and sports medicine specialists said CPR does not help in sudden cardiac death as it is instantaneous. “It can occur because of underlying and unidentified conditions like hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and irregular heartbeat. It happens suddenly with no warning.”BSA coach Udaybhanu Banerjee said the club had signed him based on last season’s performance. “We conducted all tests before inducting him. There were no anomalies,” he said.

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