CHENNAI: A 23-year-old professional first division cricketer on Friday died by suicide after jumping from the Kathipara flyover, police said.
The cricketer, identified as S Samuel Raj of Virugambakkam, was returning home on his two-wheeler after a practice session when he resorted to the extreme step.
Passersby, who spotted a man jumping off the flyover, informed the police and called an ambulance. Subsequently, Samuel Raj was rushed to the Chromepet Government Hospital where he was declared dead.
The body has been sent for postmortem.
Due to the incident, traffic came to a halt along the flyover for nearly 45 minutes, the police said.
No suicide note was left behind by Samuel Raj nor did he send any last-minute messages to his friends or family, police added.
Quoting his friends, police sources investigating the case said that Samuel was seemingly disturbed for the past few days as he had not been selected for the state team as well as by franchises in the ongoing Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL).
"We suspect that this might be the reason for his resorting to the extreme step," a police source said.
Samuel was an MBA graduate who was part of the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) XI side for the Buchi Babu tournament last year and led the South Zone side in the Vizzy trophy, a national-level tournament organised by the BCCI.
Friends recalled him as a talented off-spinner in the mold of Indian great R Ashwin and a hard-working player who was totally committed to the game. He was a regular member of the top teams in TNCA's first division league for the past few years.
Samuel Raj's death has left many aspiring cricketers in the city heartbroken. Many have expressed their shock and condolences.
St Thomas Mount police have registered a case of unnatural death.
(Assistance for those having suicidal thoughts is available on TN’s health helpline 104 and Sneha’s suicide prevention helpline 044-24640050)