Former Rajasthan Royals (RR) paceman S Sreesanth recently opened up about not being provided with an opportunity to face-off against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) talisman MS Dhoni.
After a brief stint at Kings XI Punjab (KXIP), Santhakumaran Sreesanth made a move to Royals under captain Rahul Dravid and mental-conditioning coach Paddy Upton.
Upton also worked with former Indian head coach Gary Kirsten in the Indian team, under whom Sree got the opportunity to lift the World Cup in 2011.
In his recent autobiography, Barefoot Coach, Upton talked about Sreesanth’s outburst in the dressing room after not being included into the lineup, back in 2013, when he was appointed as head coach.
Upton then revealed about Sreesanth abusing him and being left out of the playing XI against CSK by Dravid. Further, Sree was instructed to go back home. Interestingly, the incident occurred a day before his arrest on May 16, 2013.
“I could never disrespect a man like Rahul Dravid. He is the best captain. I was angry because I was not part of the squad during the CSK match. I asked the reason for the same,” Sreesanth opined on the Helo app, on Friday.
“Yes, I want to play against CSK and want to win against them. But I don’t know the exact reason for keeping me out. In the Durban match, I bowled to MS Dhoni and took his wicket. After that match, I did not get any chance to play against CSK. Team management never gave me a proper reason. I don’t hate Dhoni or CSK, but I go with colour. CSK jersey resembles the Australian team, that’s all,” added the Kerala speedster.
Further, Sreesanth commented about players not respecting Upton due to his cricketing credentials and expressed his displeasure for revealing about the incident in his book.
“Paddy Upton was not respected by many players in the team. He was not that big of a player. But I used to have a good conversation with him. I really don’t know what made him write this. He should only explain the reason,” Sreesanth concluded.
