Ankeet Chavan seeks MCA’s help to get life ban revoked

India’s veteran pacer S Sreesanth made his much-awaited comeback to competitive cricket in September 2020 after serving a seven-year-long ban. Sreesanth was a renowned name in the Indian cricket fraternity however the pacer’s career witnessed a downfall after he was found guilty in the spot-fixing scandal of the 2013 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). 

Sreesanth along with his two other Rajasthan Royals (RR) teammates including the likes of  Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan were booked for the spot-fixing charges. All three players received a harsh punishment as they were handed a lifetime ban from playing any kind of competitive cricket. 

However, Sreesanth challenged this decision in the Supreme Court and after a long legal battle was declared innocent. The veteran’s ban was also reduced to seven years and he finally played his first competitive match since 2013 for Kerala in September 2020.

The decorated pacer also registered his name for the IPL auction for the 14th edition of the T20 championship. However, his application was rejected and he couldn’t make it to the auction table. 

Meanwhile, it is now learned that Mumbai spinner Ankeet Chavan also wants to make a comeback to the gentlemen’s game. Just like Sreesanth, Ankeet is also hopeful of creating magic on the cricket field with the ball once again.

The former spinner was involved in an interaction with Cricbuzz where he revealed that he approached Mumbai Cricket Asociation to help him.

Chavan was helped by MCA as he received the permission of the Ombudsman of the Mumbai Cricket Association to resume cricket after a seven-year ban (which ended in September 2020). The spinner got the required permission from the Ombudsman early in May.

I have not heard from the BCCI: Ankeet Chavan

“I have pleadingly requested the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) to help and support me as it has always done in the past and take my application forward. The Ombudsman, in his order a month back (May 3), said that my punishment is reduced to seven years which ended in September 2020,” Ankeet Chavan said as quoted by Cricbuzz.

Further, the 35-year-old revealed that he is now waiting for the required permission from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to make a comeback. Ankeet wrote to the Indian board but is yet to receive a reply from them. Thus, the spinner has asked MCA to intervene but the association isn’t keen on doing anything without the permission of BCCI.

“I have written to the BCCI to have my ban revoked and attached the Ombudsman order too. But I have not heard from the BCCI and hence I have requested the MCA to intervene,” Chavan stated.