S Sreesanth Opens Up On The Hellish Experience His Family Went Through After Spot-Fixing Scandal

S Sreesanth was just the second player from Kerala to represent India in the longest format of the game when he made his debut against England in 2006 and the right-arm pacer totally justified the hype surrounding him. His five wickets in the Jamaica Test in that very year played a key role in India’s historic triumph before he did even better by taking eight wickets against South Africa in Johannesburg in 2006 which helped India win their first Test in the country.

A year later, he played an integral role in India’s historic win in the inaugural World T20 and was also an important part of the team that lifted the 50-overs World Cup in 2011. But his career took an unfortunate turn in 2013 when he was accused of match-fixing during an Indian Premier League game in 2013. Consequently, he was banned for life by the BCCI and is still waiting to get a clearance from the board despite the courts clearing him of the charges.

Well, it seems Sreesanth was not the only one who suffered after being charged of match-fixing as his family too had a torrid time. The discarded bowler himself said that his family went through hell.

“Oh my god, it was hell. My family is very well respected in my neighbourhood. There are some very educated people in my family, while I took to playing cricket. When I won the World Cups (2007 World T20 and the 2011 World Cup), they all put me on their shoulders and treated me with such respect. All of a sudden, when this fixing thing happened, they put me and my family through hell. My father and my mother couldn’t even go to a temple peacefully. My niece couldn’t go to school because of everything they said about me. It was tough times. I don’t wish even my enemies go through a phase like this in their lives,” he recalled during an interview with Wisden India.

The Kerala High Court has recently ordered the BCCI to lift the life ban on bowler but the board is now all set to appeal against the verdict. However, the 34-year old is adamant to return to the cricket field not only for himself but also his family and friends who stood by him during the tough times.

This is one of the reasons why I want to come back, because my family and my friends stood by me during this tough time. I think they deserve to be repaid for their faith in me. I have made some mistakes in my life, but fixing is not something I would ever be involved in. I went to jail for 27 days and my people broke down when I went through that. I didn’t think I was ever going to get out. Even there, I was only thinking of when I could get back and play because I believed in our justice system,” he added.