Top 5 biggest controversies in S Sreesanth's cricketing career

S Sreesanth was part of India’s winning teams in 2007 T20 World Cup and 2011 ODI World Cup.

Kerala-born Indian pacer S. Sreesanth made his debut for India in 2005 when he played his first ODI game against Sri Lanka in Nagpur. One of his main skillsets as a bowler was to swing the ball at a good pace. He played for India for 6 years and represented the country across three formats.

Sreesanth was part of India’s 2007 and 2011 World Cup-winning teams and played a good role in them. But it is also true that he had a controversial career both at the international and domestic (IPL or other leagues) levels. In this article, we will talk about the top five cricket controversies that happened in Sreesanth’s career.

Here are the Top 5 biggest controversies in S Sreesanth’s cricketing career

5. Vicious Beamers to Kevin Pietersen and Michael Vaughan :

India had a successful tour of England in 2007, when they won the three-match test series 1-0. But during the second test series in Nottingham, Sreesanth bowled a vicious beamer to Kevin Pietersen, which took the batter by surprise, and he fell down to avoid the ball. Later in the game, he bowled another beamer to Michael Vaughan. The pacer was fined 50 percent of his match fee, but many former English cricketers said that he should be banned for one match.

4. Slapped by Harbhajan Singh :

There have been many controversies in cricket, but not many got physical. However, during IPL 2008, former Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh slapped S. Sreesanth. It was an IPL game between Mumbai Indians and Punjab Kings (then Kings XI Punjab). PBKS won the game against Harbhajan-led MI. During the handshake after the win, the pacer said to Bhajji, “Hard luck, Bhajji Pa,” in a sarcastic way, and Harbhajan lost his cool. However, the former off-spinner apologized and both patched up.

3. Danced after hitting a Six :

It was a test between India and South Africa in 2005. Sreesanth came out to bat at No. 11, and South African pacer Andre Nel was bowling at him. He bowled a bouncer and sledged Sreesanth, which didn’t end well. Kerela-born pacer came down the track on the very next ball, slammed the ball for a six-over bowler’s head, and started dancing on the crease. The incident is still one of the funniest moments in cricket.

2. Heated Exchange with Gautam Gambhir in LLC 2023 :

Sreesanth was seen involved in a heated exchange with former Indian opener Gautam Gambhir. This incident took place in the eliminator game of the Legends League Cricket 2023 between India Capitals and Gujarat Giants. Gambhir hit the pacer for six and four, and Sreesanth gave a stare to the left-hander. The situation got to the point where other players and umpires had to intervene. Later after the game, the pacer posted a video and taunted Gambhir, saying that he doesn’t respect his own teammates.

Sreesanth also claimed in a live video that Gambhir called him a “Fixer” during the on-field spat and even threw some verbal expletives at him.

1. IPL Spot Fixing :

During IPL 2013, Sreesanth was found guilty of spot fixing and was arrested along with his Rajasthan Royals teammates, Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan, by the Delhi Police. Jiju Janardhan, who was the main guy in that scandal, was the cousin of the pacer. The pacer admitted the fixing charges, and he suffered a life ban by BCCI. In 2017, Kerela High Court lifted his ban. Later in 2022, he announced his retirement from Indian cricket.

For more updates, follow Khel Now Cricket on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube; download the Khel Now Android App or IOS App and join our community on Whatsapp & Telegram.