Former India pacer S Sreesanth recently recalled the darkest phase of his life; when he was accused of IPL spot-fixing 11 years ago. On 16 May 2013, three Rajasthan Royals players were arrested on the allegation of spot-fixing and one of them was a 2-time World Cup winner, Sreesanth. The episode jolted Indian cricket with fans losing their interest in the sport. The incident closed the doors of Indian dressing forever for the Kerala cricketer, forcing him to spend some part of his life behind bars.
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Sreesanth was given a clean chit after struggling for a couple of years and took another four years to get cleared of his life ban imposed by the BCCI. The former cricketer revisited those tough days in an interview on YouTube show, ‘The Ranveer Show’ and revealed how he fought against the odds to prove himself.
“I’m not the bowler who goes for saving runs. I go for taking wickets. So, if you are looking to save runs, I’m not the bowler. So that controversial over… the scenario they put me in, it took me 2.5 years to get a clean chit. After that, I had to fight with BCCI for 4 years which no other cricketer has ever done before,” Sreesanth said in the interview.
“I had to bring the best of the best people, crores and crores of money were spent on lawyers and moving around, just to be back on the field, when the whole world is against you. And I had very few people around me. There were occasions when people said, “I don’t even know him,” and from there to sitting here, I’m really grateful,” he added.
The incident that led to Sreesanth’s arrest
Sreesanth was accused of spot-fixing an IPL 2013 game against Kings XI Punjab (Punjab Kings) on May 9th. The Delhi Police claimed to have enough evidence to prove the bowler’s act. Speaking in the interview, Sreesanth said he didn’t concede more than 13 runs in that particular over which had made no case against him.
“If I speak of that over, the accusation was of 14-plus runs in one over. If you follow cricket, my first five balls went for 5 runs. There wasn’t a single no-ball, not a single wide, not even I attempted to give runs, and it was so-called fixed. Gilchrist and Shaun Marsh were on strike, and the boundary which was hit was on the rise. I was coming after 12 surgeries,” Sreesanth said.
“I waited patiently. When everyone doubts you, you don’t explain them all but take your time. I needed to prove to family members. My nephews and nieces were getting abused. My parents were not allowed to enter the temples. I had to prove it to the entire who had doubted me.
“I gave away 13 runs and if there are no 14-plus runs, then where’s the case? The incident happened on 9th May and I was picked up on 16th, I asked why. I was in the Delhi Cell, the terrorist ward… someone who has two world cups for India. And When I saw mum-dad… My dad had a severe attack, my mother lost her left leg. So many things happened but they never told me about it,” he added.
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