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Australia opener Nic Maddinson reveals Testicular Cancer battle at 33

Rajgeeta Yadav

Maddinson reveals battle with testicular cancer [Source: AFP]Maddinson reveals battle with testicular cancer [Source: AFP]

Australia cricketer Nic Maddinson, who made his international debut in India 12 years ago, has revealed that he has been battling testicular cancer at the age of 33. Maddinson, a talented left-handed batter who last played for Australia nine years ago, shared his story about the toughest period of his life and how he is now slowly returning to cricket after months of treatment.

Maddinson shares emotional cancer journey

In May this year, Maddinson was diagnosed with cancer, which had spread to his abdominal lymph nodes and lungs. The news came as a huge shock. 

“Once I found out I had to have chemo, that was pretty hard to deal with. It had spread to parts of my abdominal lymph nodes and lung. That was a bit where it was pretty daunting," he told Nine newspapers.

At the same time, Maddinson and his wife Bianca were expecting their second child, Wilder, which made the period even more emotional. He described chemotherapy as the “longest nine weeks” of his life.

“By the second or third week, I lost all my hair,” he said. “I was feeling pretty average. I was taking types of steroids to manage side effects, but they would keep me up at night … I’d sleep until about 1am, but sometimes I’d then be awake until 6 am. I found that difficult. I was super drained and felt like I had to sleep 24/7."

Despite the tough journey, Maddinson pushed through. His chemotherapy ended on July 14, and just 10 days later, he was back in the nets, slowly rebuilding his strength. Two months later, he received the best news possible, the treatment had worked. 

"Eight weeks after my last chemo round, I got good news. The treatment had worked," he said.

Now cancer-free, Maddinson has returned to training with New South Wales and hopes to play Sydney Premier Cricket and possibly in the Second XI soon. With over 10,000 professional runs across formats, he still dreams of wearing the Baggy Green again, though he admits it will be a challenge. 

"I had a really good opportunity last year and I just didn't really grab it," he said.

Maddinson also shared an important message for others: "If one person reads it and gets checked, I'll be happy."

So far, Maddinson has played 3 Test matches and 6 T20Is Internationals for Australia.