Chennai: S. Sreesanth's return to cricket appears to be far from smooth as the BCCI is yet to him the green light a week after the Kerala high court had lifted the ban on the pacer. The cricketer had been banned on charges of match fixing in the Indian Premier League.
In an interview with Wisden India, the man with 169 international wickets challenged BCCI to make the evidence they have against him public. “They said I had to serve my time and I did. Not once have they provided me with the facts of the case. If they feel like I am involved, I insist that they make it public. They have never proved that I was involved in spot-fixing in any way.
Even criminals serving a life-ban get early bails, and those are cases that involve far greater crimes,” said 34-year-old. The pacer urged the Board to let him play league cricket and prove to his fans he is not done. “I do not want to be remembered as someone who was good once and then got involved in fixing and never woke up from it. I cannot be made the poster child for match-fixing when I haven't fixed a single game in my life. I do not want my children to remember me as some criminal. They know the truth but if the world paints a picture long enough, kids will believe it or at least question it at some point. At least for their sake, I hope I can return to playing cricket,” said Sreesanth.
Even though life outside cricket has been good to Sreesanth who recently acted in a movie started his political career, the pacer said all he ever wanted to do is play cricket.
“I don't know how to play politics. I don't know how to handle different people differently and all that. I go out there and perform. I put my heart on my sleeve and I give my country and any team I play for everything I have. I don't cheat. These distractions are nice for now and honestly, they're more for me to earn for my family. They're not a full-time deal. I cannot live without cricket and that's why I am fighting for it,” added the former Indian team pacer.
The pacer added that he would forever be grateful to BCCI of they gave him permission to play. “I am willing to put everything behind and just focus on my cricket. I just wish to follow my dreams and make my family proud. I do not want to keep reliving this. I need to make new memories and this will help me do that. I have seen too much in my life. I just want to be happy. Is that too much to ask?”
