The BCCI Ombudsman provided a glimmer of hope for Sreesanth in 2019 by reducing his permanent ban to seven years, officially making him eligible to compete again as of September 13, 2020. However, because he had been completely sidelined from professional cricket since the 2013 IPL spot-fixing allegations—even after he was eventually acquitted—re-entering the domestic scene has been a steep climb.
After being acquitted of spot-fixing, Sreesanth was handed a lifeline by the BCCI Ombudsman in 2019, after the pacer’s life ban was reduced to 7 years, meaning he would become eligible to play cricket again, on 13 September 2020. Having not played any professional cricket since his alleged involvement within the IPL spot-fixing scandal in 2013 – a case during which he was eventually found acquitted the road back to domestic cricket.
During a recent interview, Sreesanth opened up about his hope to eventually rejoin the Indian national team, though he emphasized that his first realistic step is regaining his position within the Kerala state team.
The public stigma of being linked to a scandal left Sreesanth's reputation in tatters for seven years, leading many former colleagues to cut ties. He revealed that the majority of his ex-teammates now avoid him, with only a handful, including the likes of 'Viru Bhai' and 'Laxman Bhai,' remaining in touch. Sreesanth expressed that he understands why they kept their distance, and he himself refrained from reaching out while his court cases were still ongoing.
A member of the historic 2011 World Cup-winning squad, Sreesanth's final match for India took place at the Oval in 2011 during a tough series against England, which ended in a 4-0 defeat for India.