Fourth-year had to have something extra, experimental, and enriching for the coming semesters to be eventful. Studies were just going by, I was struggling to be honest. Missing classes, sleeping in whatever time I found, or maybe binge-watching sitcoms on my laptop. Time with friends was slowly becoming a heavy burden as everyone except for me had something or the other to talk about- activities they were passionate about. You could see the gleaming eyes when they talked about stuff. For me, I somehow had to learn to love what I did every day.

Finally, one day I found an online contest on ESPNCricinfo which required the participants to write taglines or text commentary on various hypothetical situations. I got hooked straight away. It began with a sleepless night where I was engaged in something constructive and rewarding after a long time. Days passed after the contest ended and I began to search for more such competitions online but found none. That was the time Stop2sports started. 

Back to my childhood, and going straight to the 2003 Cricket World Cup. I was head over heels over the spectacle of Cricket and at the age of ten, I had found my first love. Since then, I followed live Cricket and didn't miss a match myself. Soon, I was a part of the school Cricket team as well, only for a year though. Apparently, I didn't play as well as some of my other classmates but did share a passion for the sport. 

So, when starting a blog, it was an instinctive choice to start with Cricket itself. I still remember that the first article was a feature on a recently concluded series between Australia and New Zealand, where the Aussies had whitewashed the Kiwis to take the trophy with the likes of Warner performing exceptionally. The article seemed to be well structured and was well received by the few people who read it. Steadily, I started writing regularly and at least two articles on various sports ranging from Lawn Tennis to Badminton started finding their way to my blog every week. 

I had started enjoying my leisure time with friends again and had something that I loved by my side. My wordplay and vocabulary improved in the process, the followers of my blog started growing and slowly reached a decent mark of 750 within five months. I surely didn't know that many people personally but for sure I was enjoying the fact that I had a substantial hobby, which I loved to the core. 

Soon, I took to Twitter as well, and started posting stuff related to sports, and was appreciated by a few sports journalists for my witty remarks over the sport of Cricket. In no time, I had completed my Dual degree and was supposed to leave college. I had turned around my mental space in the last two years, and was way more positive and proactive than I had been a couple of years ago! 

The most bizarre revelation that I discovered was that sports not only helps you stay physically fit, if you are a regular player, it also helps you exercise your mental muscles if you are a tad bit serious about expressing your opinion on it. Lastly, I learned that a serious hobby can do wonders for your confidence, and can be your silent comforter by the side, who shares your hard times and makes you rise as a stronger individual.

.    .    .