S Sreesanth expresses new political ambition with BJP, wants to defeat Shashi Tharoor in 2024 LS elections

Disgraced India cricketer S Sreesanth loves to steal headlines. The 36-year-old has tried hands in entertainment and politics after getting banned from cricket over spot-fixing scandals but expressed his desire to complete 100 Test wickets after his ban was reduced to seven years by the BCCI.

Now, the Kerala cricketer has expressed a desire of defeating Congress parliamentarian from his state Shashi Tharoor on a BJP ticket in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Tharoor is currently a three-time MP from Thiruvananthapuram, winning the 2019 Lok Sabha election from the seat in his latest victory. He had also served as a minister in the former Manmohan Singh-led government.

If S Sreesanth eventually contests against Tharoor, it will not be his maiden venture into politics. In the state elections in Kerala in 2016, Sreesanth had contested from Thiruvananthapuram on the BJP’s ticket but lost to the Congress’ VS Sivakumar by over 11,000 votes.

The cricketer said he has great respect for Tharoor and also conceded that the latter had stood by him but was also sure that he would defeat him in the 2024 general elections, according to a report in The Indian Express.

‘Now I am in control and so many good things are happening’

“I am a huge fan of his (sic) as a person who had stood by me but I will defeat him in the elections in Thiruvananthapuram. No doubt about it,” S Sreesanth was quoted as saying by the daily. “Now I am in control and so many good things are happening – from music, movies, books, web-series, cricket, and politics,” he added.

Sreesanth, who has played for India between 2005 and 2011 and taken 169 wickets across formats (87 in Tests), found his life ban reduced to seven years in August after a lot of struggle. He participated in the popular show Big Boss last year in which he finished as the runner-up.

Sreesanth had been part of the two World Cup-winning Indian teams – T20 in 2007 in South Africa and 50-over cricket at home in 2011. The final of the 2011 World Cup has remained his final ODI appearance for India.

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