LESS than four years ago, there was a real chance Vikrant Dabra would never play cricket again.
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A seizure on the field while playing for North Ballarat in December 2020 saw him rushed to hospital to have a previously undetected mass removed from his brain.
Ongoing complications since have meant he has gone through two bouts of chemotherapy, but on Tuesday all was forgotten when he won the Bernie Davey Medal for the best player in the Ballarat Cricket Association's Second XI.
Dabra, who now plays at Lucas, won the count by one vote from last year's winner Sandikan Pathirana of Creswick Imperials.
"I was really happy with the way the season started, I played well against East and did really well against Wendouree too, I felt I dipped out a bit in the middle, I had to go overseas, but I came back and was happy with the way things finished up.
"This has been my second year at Lucas, having previously come from North Ballarat, and before that I was in Melbourne.
"I want to stay at Lucas, they've welcomed me so well, it really feels like a home there. I'd love to be able to win a premiership with them."
Dabra detailed his ongoing battle over the past four years, saying he always believed he would get back on the cricket field.
"I had mass in my brain that we didn't know about, I had a seizure, I didn't know what was going on," he said.
"So I ended up having emergency surgery in Melbourne and then I think I was back about a month or six weeks later playing again.
"They didn't put me on chemo at the start, but then it came back, so now I have to go and have regular reviews, I've been on chemo twice now."
He said being able to play the game he loved had been a massive help in his recovery.
"It means the world to be able to come back and play," he said.
"One moment you think you may never be able to play again, but my family has supported me and helped me get well, they love me being able to get out there and play cricket as well.
"There was no fear coming back, I have regular contact with my surgeon, my team of specialists and I've answered all the necessary questions, so they gave me the all clear to play cricket."
This is the first time Dabra has taken out a league best and fairest award.
"I've won a club award before, but never a league award before. It's hard to put words to it what it means to me to win this," he said.
BERNIE DAVEY MEDAL LEADERBOARD
15 - Vikrant Dabra (Lucas)
14 - Sandikan Pathirana (Creswick-Imperials)
12 - Josh Wells (Burrumbeet)
12 - Matt Ryan (Dunnstown)
