<p class="title">Former England spinner Monty Panesar says he wants to return to cricket having been cured of the "paranoia/schizophrenia" which bedeviled him over the past few years.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The 37-year-old -- who became a bit of a cult hero at his peak taking 167 wickets in 50 Tests -- told the Daily Mail he had been helped enormously by former England captain Mike Brearley, who is a respected psychoanalyst.</p>.<p class="bodytext">His career has declined since being unceremoniously let go by Sussex in 2013 -- the same year he made the last of his Test appearances -- which came after he urinated on a nightclub bouncer.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Panesar's depression started to spiral and contributed towards an unhappy stint at Essex and had a brief spell at Northamptonshire, where he started his career and first came to national attention.</p>.<p class="bodytext">However, since being released by them in 2016 he has yet to find another county willing to gamble on him.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"My parents became worried. They wanted me to see someone," he said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"I had always thought strong people couldn't have a problem.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"My cricket had always gone the way I had planned it, but suddenly things started going in a direction I hadn't experienced since childhood.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"It was a guy called Peter Gilmore who said I was suffering from paranoia/schizophrenia and that shocked me massively.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"Mike Brearley told me to be careful about the things I was saying to myself. Some experts thought I'd never get better but I knew I could fight it, come through it."</p>.<p class="bodytext">Panesar, who was recruited by Australia to serve as a spin-bowling consultant for their 2017 tour of India, says the image of him being a bad boy is wrong.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"I love the game. I'm not a bad egg in the dressing room, I'm actually a nice guy," he said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"I want people to remember the good Monty, but it takes a while to eradicate bad memories. It's like I'm a fireball and people are worried that if they get too close to me they'll get burnt.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"I'm mentally and physically 100 per cent back to my best and I've been good for the last two years."</p>
<p class="title">Former England spinner Monty Panesar says he wants to return to cricket having been cured of the "paranoia/schizophrenia" which bedeviled him over the past few years.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The 37-year-old -- who became a bit of a cult hero at his peak taking 167 wickets in 50 Tests -- told the Daily Mail he had been helped enormously by former England captain Mike Brearley, who is a respected psychoanalyst.</p>.<p class="bodytext">His career has declined since being unceremoniously let go by Sussex in 2013 -- the same year he made the last of his Test appearances -- which came after he urinated on a nightclub bouncer.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Panesar's depression started to spiral and contributed towards an unhappy stint at Essex and had a brief spell at Northamptonshire, where he started his career and first came to national attention.</p>.<p class="bodytext">However, since being released by them in 2016 he has yet to find another county willing to gamble on him.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"My parents became worried. They wanted me to see someone," he said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"I had always thought strong people couldn't have a problem.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"My cricket had always gone the way I had planned it, but suddenly things started going in a direction I hadn't experienced since childhood.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"It was a guy called Peter Gilmore who said I was suffering from paranoia/schizophrenia and that shocked me massively.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"Mike Brearley told me to be careful about the things I was saying to myself. Some experts thought I'd never get better but I knew I could fight it, come through it."</p>.<p class="bodytext">Panesar, who was recruited by Australia to serve as a spin-bowling consultant for their 2017 tour of India, says the image of him being a bad boy is wrong.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"I love the game. I'm not a bad egg in the dressing room, I'm actually a nice guy," he said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"I want people to remember the good Monty, but it takes a while to eradicate bad memories. It's like I'm a fireball and people are worried that if they get too close to me they'll get burnt.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"I'm mentally and physically 100 per cent back to my best and I've been good for the last two years."</p>