S Sreesanth

In Hindi, the name Sreesanth translates to calm - however, the cricketer Sreesanth is anything but. With various tags such as Maverick, Eccentric and Temperamental attached to him, Sreesanth has managed to create more headlines than any other player in his eventful career. Born on February 6th 1983 in Kerala, Sreesanth initially wanted to be a leg spinner, but after creating ripples with his yorkers he soon gave up that thought and converted himself into a fast bowler.

Sreesanth first gained fame when he took a hat-trick against Himachal Pradesh in a Ranji trophy game, the first time it was achieved by a Kerala bowler. He was soon selected to play in the Challenger Trophy in October 2005 for India B and he dismissed Sachin Tendulkar after repeatedly sledging him - which prompted Sachin to reportedly tell him 'Don't ever come that close to me again'. He emerged as the leading wicket-taker in that series and he was rewarded with a selection to the Indian team to take on the Lankans in the ODI series that followed.

Consistent performances in the ODI squad led to him being given a Test cap against England in March 2006 and he continued to impress with his fine seam bowling. Sreesanth's break-through performance came in the opening Test at Wanderers when India toured South Africa in 2007. Bowling at a fair clip and getting the ball to move both ways, Sreesanth scythed through the Proteas batting line-up with figures of 5-40, which enabled India to bowl out the Proteas for 83 - thereby helping India to their first ever Test win on South African soil. During that series, Sreesanth achieved further non-cricketing fame when he twirled his bat and shook his hips in a dance step after hitting Andre Nel for a six over his head, gaining him instant notoriety.

He was picked to play for Kings XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League in 2008 and during a match against the Mumbai Indians at Mohali he was involved in the infamous 'slapgate' incident - being caught on camera crying inconsolably after being slapped on the face by Harbhajan Singh. However, despite that incident Sreesanth had a good outing in the IPL, emerging as the second leading wicket taker in the tournament after Sohail Tanveer, claiming 18 wickets. After the tournament however, persistent injuries forced Sreesanth out of the Indian side.

He returned to mainstream action in the next IPL and he slowly came back to form with some good spells in the latter half of the tournament. Sreesanth joined Warwickshire in August 2009 and under the guidance of Allan Donald soon regained his verve and pace. But the bad boy image soon came back to haunt him as the BCCI issued a final warning to Sreesanth in October 2009, asking him to mend his on-field behaviour, failure of which would invite a suspension from domestic matches. Following this, the Kerala Cricket Association also issued him a final warning for repeatedly violating the code of conduct. This was after Sreesanth failed to turn up at the Kerala Ranji Trophy team camp in Kannur, even though he had been appointed captain. Later on he went onto represent Kochi Tuskers Kerala and Rajasthan Royals.

Sreesanth's long list of antics include shoulder barging Michael Vaughan, bowling a nasty beamer to Kevin Pietersen on India's tour of England in 2007 and the slapgate. Despite the antics, Sreesanth remains a fine bowler, with a magnificent upright seam position when he delivers the ball. He has come in for high praise from none other than Allan Donald for his skills, although he has warned Sreesanth to correct his behaviour if he has to make it big in international cricket.

Sreesanth was given a shock recall to the Indian side for a three match Test series against Sri Lanka in late 2009, which breathed a new lease of life into the talented, yet mercurial paceman. Sreesanth was in and out of the side since then and he is best remembered for his delivery to dismiss Jacques Kallis at Durban with a ball that took off from a length and troubled the genius. He last played a Test match against England in 2011 and has been out of the side due his troublesome toes. A number of surgeries had to be done and he returned to competitive cricket in the end of the 2012 domestic season.

However, he broke down soon after and then returned to play the domestic games again in 2013. Just when the selectors were looking up to him as a promising fast bowler to be roped into the national side, Sreesanth was involved in a spot-fixing scandal during the 6th edition of the IPL playing for Rajasthan Royals. The BCCI barred him from any form of cricket and he has not played competitive cricket since then.

Outside of cricket, Sreesanth is a student of Psychology and is a breakdancer, he became a national champion when he was in his eighth standard. He has appeared in several TV shows where he has exhibited his dancing skills.

by Srivathsa - March 2014