Indian cricketers who shared strained relationships with their fathers

Sanjay Manjrekar, ex-India batter and commentator, grew up dreading his father Vijay, who was a 1960s Test star with 17 centuries. Vijay’s mantra for his son was: Perfection or silence. No praise, just critiques. In his 2018 autobiography ‘Imperfect’ and earlier interviews, Sanjay had recalled having zero warmth from his father. He described his father as “disturbed, frustrated, angry”. Sanjay also shared that their meals together were formal, they had cricket-only talks, and fear ruled their home. “I had no relationship with my father to speak of,” Sanjay once said, reported cricketcountry.com in 2018. But, it seems that when Sanjay became a dad, fatherhood flipped him—he was more acceptig and kind to his kids, as compared to his own father. “I’m happy that both my children have nothing to do with cricket” Sanjay once said in 2018 interviews, showsing his deliberate choice to avoid repeating his father’s intense coaching and strict parenting.