Sreesanth has vowed to comeback to cricket

Sreesanth, the mercurial former Indian medium pace bowler is trying to make a comeback into first class cricket. Sreesanth was banned after the 2013 IPL spot-fixing scandal. He was out of the game for more than 6 years and now he wants to be comeback to the game. Now that he has served his sentence which by the way was harsh because it was afterall in the IPL and not in international cricket or any first-class game and that it wasn’t match fixing, he must be allowed to play in Ranji Trophy.

Sreesanth is 37 years old now. So his competitive playing career is all but over. He most certainly will not be able to represent the country any longer but he being a cricketer who knows nothing else but to play the game passionately, must be allowed to play at the first-class level. Afterall, he must earn a living. Tinu Yohannan, the Kerala coach for his part has said that he will welcome Sreesanth into the Kerala team provided he is fit and in form. Fair enough.

Now the onus is on the BCCI, firstly, to allow Sreesanth to play for Kerala and secondly, to ensure that the Ranji season gets underway. At the moment, it looks like the Indian first-class season may not go ahead at all. This essentially means that Sreesanth, in his advanced age, will miss out on earning a livelihood this season. If the BCCI agrees to compensate the players, the board is unlikely to compensate a player who has just returned from a ban.

A talented wasted down the drain

Sreesanth is known for his eccentric behaviour and exaggerated appealing. He was warned multiple times for his on-field behaviour. First, by BCCI and next by Kerala State Cricket Association but it seems to have fallen on deaf ears. Sreesanth seems to be spoiled child. Though the board will have to take certain responsibility for an unfulfilled talent, the major blame lies squarely on the shoulders of Sreesanth. Any player, after this many warnings, will most certainly want to change his ways. Sreesanth must have concentrated on his game but failed to do so. If only Sreesanth had managed to curb his instincts, he would have been a great asset for the team.

No one who has watched Sreesanth in action will be able to forget that upright seam. He used to bowl at lively pace as well and he swung the ball at good pace. This rare combination made him a threat on surfaces that helped the bowlers. It is impossible to forget his 5-40 against South Africa that destroyed South Africa in their first innings. India gained a lead of more than 200 runs and eventually won that test. It was India’s first test win in South Africa and Sreesanth is responsible for that.

India’s second test win in South Africa was also primarily because of Sreesanth. South Africa were chasing about 330odd to win when Jacques Kallis was playing brilliantly. At that point, Sreesanth produced a delivery that was simply unplayable. That wicket turned the game around and India were able to win easily. A bowler who can produce such wonderful deliveries and such magnificent spells was lost for the team forever. Primarily because of his own inability to suppress his instincts and partly because of the board’s inability to guide a brilliant bowler.

Sreesanth beyond cricket

Sreesanth inorder to make ends meet tried his skills in acting. He acted in 4 movies but whether they were a success or not is not known. He also participated in Bigg Boss. Any Indian cricket fan who has watched Sreesanth in his prime and who saw him in movies and in Big Boss will forever be troubled by the fact that a magnificent and a brilliant bowler, who could have taken more than 300 test wickets during his playing career was lost to the team and to the game because of improper guidance.

What do you think? Should Sreesanth be allowed to play at the first class level? Shouldn’t he be allowed to earn a living?