I thought I was going to die: James Taylor

Former England batsman James Taylor, who was forced to retire due to a serious heart condition, recently said that he first believed that he was “going to die”.

Taylor, who featured in seven Tests and 27 One-Day Internationals for England recalled the day when he felt uneasy during one of his practice sessions. He disclosed that it was after the warm up that he started feeling uneasy and his heart rate went on the rise.

“I had my usual morning nap, and then did the warm-up. Towards the back end of the warm-up that’s when my chest started getting tight. Apart from being tight, it was beating at a million miles an hour. We were doing just a couple of routine catches and throws,” Taylor was quoted as saying by the BBC on Sunday.

He further added that despite the temperatures being as low as four degrees, he was sweating hard. This made him realize that there was certainly some problem and he wasn’t right. “My heart was going wild at a funny rhythm. It was probably only about four degrees, really cold, and I got inside. Sweat from me is hitting the ground hard. So I knew I wasn’t right,” he quoted. Such was the fear in his mind that he felt he might die. “And that’s when I thought I was going to die,” he added.

Asked how he is coping with the fact that he is not a cricketer anymore, Taylor said, “I think that’s been the hardest bit. When the doctor told me, I was in hysterics at first.”

“But then he told me that the majority of these cases are only found out in the post-mortem. I almost stopped crying at that point and felt more lucky that I’m in a position to tell this story now.”

Taylor also revealed to sky sports that his heart rate when he went into the hospital was 265 beats per minute, which is four beats per second.

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