Pakistan opener Abid Ali has been given the green light to resume his international career, four months after suffering a heart attack.
The 34-year-old had undergone an angioplasty a day after he was rushed to a hospital for chest pain while playing a match in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy in Karachi last December.
"I am really excited to be back with the prospect of playing for Pakistan again. Doctors cleared me to go back in the field and I can finally return to live a normal life," Abid said.
"I will be on medicines for some time because of the stents implanted but overall, physically, I am feeling great. I am diving, running, jogging, batting and it's really great to be normal again. There were doubts if I could play again with a heart condition but I didn't lose hope.I stopped thinking about cricket for some time and focused on regaining a healthy life first. It was tough but the recovery has been great with all the extensive rehabilitation," he added.
Abid had to undergo an extensive rehabilitation programme and wait for months to get clearance from doctors to play again.
Cardiac surgeons, after several tests, diagnosed that Abid was suffering from "acute coronary syndrome", which, in simple terms, means there was blockage of blood flow in his heart.
He was batting on 61 for Central Punjab against Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at the UBL complex when the team manager rushed him to the hospital after he complained of chest pain and uneasiness in his shoulder.
"I am not sure what is the status of my national selection right now but I am fully set for my comeback," Abid said."For now, I started with the shorter format by playing three-four games in the Ramzan tournament in Faisalabad and it went well."
Earlier this week, he appeared in a local T20 league match in Faisalabad and scored a half-century.
"These two games have given me confidence to revive my cricketing career. This is just the start and I am working hard on my fitness to stay in contention for selection.
"I need to work very hard to catch up on the lost time and I am quite hopeful that I will be able to achieve that. I still have a lot of cricket left in me and I don't want to sit back. Cricket has been my life."
