S Sreesanth, the tainted Indian fast bowler, is set to mark his comeback in the President’s T20 Cup- a tournament organised by the Kerala Cricket Association (KCA). Back in September, the 37-year-old pacer’s seven-year-long ban ended after his career went into the doldrums due to the spot-fixing scandal in the 2013 Indian Premier League (IPL). After being banned from the sport for these many years, his suspension finally ended on September 13, Sunday.
The Kerala Cricket Association has planned a T20 League, titled President’s Cup, to resume cricketing activities in the state in December. The dates, however, are not finalised. The event, subject to state government clearance, will mark the return of Sreesanth.
The fast bowling prodigy made his debut for India in 2005. He represented the Indian cricket team in 27 tests, 53 ODIs, and 10 T20Is including two World Cups. His last international match appearance came against England at the Kennington Oval in 2011.
The tournament will have six teams in the fray. They are KCA Royals, KCA Tigers, KCA Tuskers, KCA Eagles, KCA Panthers and KCA Lions. There will be no franchisees or owners. Each team consists of 14 players and two support staff. There will also be four players “on-call” for each team, if replacements are required. The tournament format will have each team playing against the other twice with the top-four qualifying for the semifinals. A total of 33 matches will be played during the 18-day competition. There will be two matches per day. The white-ball tournament will have teams wearing coloured jerseys.
