NEW DELHI, JUN 9 (Agencies): Former cricketer Maninder Singh, who recently found himself embroiled in a drug abuse controversy, was admitted to a local hospital in the small hours of today after he allegedly slashed his wrists in what is believed to be a suicide attempt.
The former leg spinner is stated to be out of danger after doctors at the Shanti Mukund Hospital in east Delhi operated upon him following his admission there in a critical condition.
"Doctors have told us that he is out of danger but he is still in the operation theatre and is not in a position to make a statement," Deputy Commissioner of Police Ajay Chaudhary told PTI.
Police received a call at around one AM.
Saying that the former cricketer was brought to the hospital in a critical condition with both his wrists slashed.
According to police, his neighbour in Mausam Vihar locality of Preet Vihar had rushed him to the hospital.
Police, however, remained tightlipped on whether it was a suicide attempt or a case of accident as claimed by his friends and family.
"We have not spoken to the doctors yet.
We will be able to reach at any conclusion only after knowing the nature of his injury," Chaudhary added.
Maninder landed in a controversy after he was caught with 1.5 grams of cocaine and arrested alongwith his friend and small-time cricketer Sayyam Siddique by the Narcotics Wing of the Delhi Police from near his residence while he was about to leave for the airport to catch a flight to Mumbai.
Police have claimed that Maninder was going through a "rough patch" due to some family problems and resorted to drugs to destress himself, which was denied in the court by him.
He is presently on bail in this case.
Police have also taken the blood samples of Maninder to ascertain whether he was under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
However, the former cricketer's wife Maili said he was injured when the glass window panes at their house broke while knocking it hard to wake the family members after coming late in the night.
"We were sleeping.
He had come late.
He knocked the door but we didn't hear it.
So he came to the balcony which has glass bay windows.
He tried to wake us up, he banged it hard and he lost his slip and he went back down like that and cut his hands," she said.
Maili said she immediately called her neighbours and rushed him to the hospital.
"Maninder's mother told me about the incident and I rushed him to the hospital and informed the police," his neighbour Sanjay Kumar told.
Meanwhile, Shanti Mukund hospital authorities said the 41-year-old cricketer-turned-commentator was "out of danger" and his condition was stable after the operation, which lasted for several hours.
Medical Superintendent of the hospital G S Mathur said Maninder was unconscious when he was brought to the hospital in the wee hours.
"He was bleeding profusely and was taken to the Intensive Care Unit," he added.
"His blood pressure was not recordable and he was in a state of shock.
He was profusely bleeding from the wounds in both his hands," he said.
"The injury in his right wrist is a bit deeper and he had lost lot of blood.
We have given him four units of blood," Deputy Medical Superintendent Dharmendra Kumar said.
Batsmen's camp gets underway at NCA sans Tendulkar, Jaffer BANGALORE, JUNE 9 (Agencies): Team India's four-day fitness-specific camp for the batsmen got underway at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) here this morning sans the Mumbai duo of Sachin Tendulkar and Wasim Jaffer.
Tendulkar is scheduled to arrive here and join the camp tomorrow evening, while Jaffer, though he has reached here, remains indisposed, an NCA source said.
Pacer S Sreesanth, who missed part of the June 4-8 bowlers' camp at Mysore to play an Afro-Asia Cup Twenty20 tie, has also joined the camp as the lone bowler.
Physical trainer Gregory King is overseeing the camp conducted ahead of the team's tour of Ireland and England.
Four Indian batsmen -- Sourav Ganguly, Virender Sehwag, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh -- who are playing in the ongoing Afro-Asian Cup, would join the camp after the three-match series concludes tomorrow.
Other batsmen who have called in the camp are Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, Gautam Gambhir, Robin Uthappa, Dinesh Mongia, Dinesh Kaarthick, Rohit Sharma, Mohammad Kaif and S Badrinath.
