Was thrown out of the ground during a celebrity league match, says Sreesanth, denying spot-fixing charges

The fast bowler, who last played for India in a Test match in 2008, narrated the incident when he was thrown out of the stadium during a celebrity cricket match after the spot-fixinf incident. “I was giving throw downs when somebody came and asked me to leave the ground immediately,” Sreesanth stated.

Denying all charges of spot-fixing, former Indian fast bowler Sreesanth stated that his mother went into depression when he was in jail for a crime which he did not even commit.

Banned from cricket for a lifetime because of his involvement in spot-fixing in the 2013 edition of IPL, Sreesanth is currently a contestant in Colors TV’s reality show Big Boss.

“I didn’t do anything, no proof, nothing at all but they still kept me in jail… I was the first cricketer to go to jail,” Sreesanth said to a fellow contestant during the latest episode of Big Boss.

The fast bowler, who last played for India in a Test match in 2011, narrated the incident when he was thrown out of the stadium during a celebrity cricket match after the spot-fixing incident. “I was giving throwdowns when somebody came and asked me to leave the ground immediately,” Sreesanth stated.

The 35-year-old broke down while stating the condition of his family. “My mother went into depression, I could not sleep at night, was afraid of everything.”

“I can’t even go to watch my children run in their annual sports day,” Sreesanth added.

Sreesanth along with two other Rajasthan Royals cricketers – Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila - were banned for life by BCCI for being involved in spot-fixing in 2013.

A Patiala House Court later in July 2015 let off the three cricketers. In 2017, a single-judge bench lifted the life-ban imposed on Sreesanth by the BCCI and also set aside all proceedings against him initiated by the board. Sreesanth's life ban was reinstated by a division bench of the Kerala High Court earlier this year after BCCI appealed against the one-judge bench verdict.

The cricketer had earlier told the court that the life ban was an extremely harsh penalty and the cricketer has not been playing for the last five years which was more than enough.

However, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had said the case against Sreesanth was 'open and shut' as telephonic conversations had revealed he had taken money for bowling 'no balls' during a 2013 IPL match.

The Supreme Court, however, decided to hear Sreesanth’s appeal against the Kerala High Court verdict which reinstated his ban. The hearing for which is still pending.

Sreesanth has represented India in 27 Tests, 53 ODIs and 10 T20Is. He was also the member of India’s Word cup squads in 2007 World T20 and 2011 ODI World Cup.