BCCI to appeal against court order that lifted Sreesanth's ban

What's the story?

Four days after the Kerala High Court's ruling, the Board of Control for Cricket in India has responded by stating that they would appeal the decision made in favour of tainted Indian fast bowler S Sreesanth.

"We don't agree with the order. It definitely needs to be challenged and within a week the appeal would be filed in the Kerala high court," a senior official was quoted as saying by AFP.

"We were always clear on this case as the board is firm on its zero tolerance policy on corruption and match-fixing," he added.

In case you didn't know...

Currently banned from playing cricket, Sreesanth looked all set to get a fresh lease of life with the Kerala High Court order which came in four days ago.

The court had stated that there was no material evidence present about Sreesanth's match fixing and that the BCCI had relied on circumstantial evidence instead.

They had also stated that the disciplinary committee ought to have been careful in analysing evidence especially when the deal itself had failed to work.

The details:

Sreesanth who looked all set to make a return to the domestic circuit will have to wait longer for now.

He was extremely happy with the High Court's ruling and proud that the ban had been lifted. He also went on to state that his plan was to play for another six years, until the age of 40. If he does return to cricket this year, he will get back to playing the Ranji Trophy for Kerala.

He also revealed that his dream was to play for India in the 2019 World Cup and was targeting a return to the Indian side when they tour South Africa.

What's next?

With the domestic season set to begin in a few months, Sreesanth will have to wait and see what action the cricketing board takes.

Author's take:

This move by the BCCI was expected given their tolerance policy towards corruption and match-fixing.

However, with the order coming in from the High Court and with them stating that the BCCI had no material evidence against Sreesanth, there is a huge possibility that we will see the pacer back in action soon enough at the domestic stage.