I Would Like To Play T-20 Leagues In Other Countries: S Sreesanth
Jan 9, 2019 at 3:57 PM
Amidst the news of S Sreesanth looking forward to playing for some other country in future, the fast bowler has himself come out in open and has said that what he meant was that he was looking to play different T20 leagues in other countries,
“I was a bit emotional and got carried away that day. What I meant was that cricket is important to me. That I would play in T-20 leagues in other countries. In Dubai, there is a T-10, for example. I was approached by these team owners to play when the ban was lifted. My words were misinterpreted.”, Sreesanth told to the Times of India.
Sreesanth was in Dubai a few days back when he commented that is looking forward to playing for some other country rather than BCCI. He also said that BCCI is a private firm. The board took notice of Sreesanth’s words and within few hours, cleared that the pacer will not be allowed even to play for some other country as per the ruling of ICC.
However, the pacer still wants to be attached to the game in any form.
Sreesanth would have been playing the ongoing Ranji Trophy had the court quashed BCCI’s plea, filed by the board after Kerala High Court lifted the ban on the pacer. BCCI, who had already banned him for life, filed a petition against Sreesanth and got the ban restored. The matter is now again in court, and Sreesanth has said that he is waiting for the order to reach him before he decides the next step,
“The matter is on the court now. I am waiting for the order to reach me. Once I get it in black and white, I will consult my legal team and take the next step. I will keep fighting. But I still believe in the judiciary and I hope I get justice. If I could wait for four-and-half years, why not a little more?” he added.
No matter what the court decision comes out, the BCCI is expected not to soften its stance, even if Sreesanth again gets the ban lifted on him because the board has opted for a zero-tolerance approach regarding the same.
The board was rocked by the fixing scandal that came out in the year 2013, during IPL 6. That event has had a deep impact on BCCI as well as the Supreme Court formed a Lodha Panel head by former Chief Justice of India, RM Lodha. The Lodha reforms resulted in changes in the working of BCCI and non-compliance of the reforms to the fullest had already seen Anurag Thakur, former Board’s President, been sacked by the Supreme Court of India.
As of now, BCCI is run by the two-member Committee of Administrators (COA) headed by former CAG of India, Vinod Rai. Diana Edulji, the former Indian captain of India women’s team, is the other member of the committee.
Had the fixing scandal not hit BCCI at that time, the board would have been running smoothly. From outside world, it seems like BCCI is irked with the players involved in that activity and as a result, the board is in no mood to soften its stance, despite the fact that all of them have been acquitted of all charges way back in 2015 by a court in Delhi.