Arguably one of the most controversial athletes ever to play for Team India, S Sreesanth on Monday (March 20) announced that he will return to the Indian Premier League (IPL) after 10 years of his spot-fixing scandal. The 40-year-old former India bowler was found guilty when he represented Rajasthan Royals in 2013 with Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila. He faced a life ban which was later reduced to seven years. He called it time in domestic cricket last year. In the latest, Sreesanth informed that he will return to the IPL after ten years as a commentator.
Star Sports, the official television broadcaster of the IPL 2023, on Tuesday announced a star-studded panel of commentators that features some of the most decorated players to have graced the 22 yards. (IPL 2023: KKR's Sunil Narine Sends Warning To Other Teams With Scary Spell, Read Here)
Cricket aficionados can tune in to watch two T20 World Cup winning captains Paul Collingwood and Aaron Finch, the latter having played for nine IPL franchises, providing a captain`s perspective.
Joining them will be former England and IPL legend Kevin Pietersen, whose extensive knowledge of the sport and colourful personality has made him a fan favourite over the years.
Another fan favourite - Danny Morrison - will be seen in his elements on Star Sports` coverage of IPL 2023. One of the greatest all-rounders ever and a former IPL coach Jacques Kallis makes his debut on Star Sports` panel.
Former Australia batters David Hussey, who was also KKR mentor and Matthew Hayden, CSK legend, will join Kallis and Pietersen. Former Purple Cap winner Imran Tahir will lend his perspective on spin-bowling, expected to play a crucial role at certain venues as IPL travels to 12 venues for the first time ever.
Former IPL coaches Tom Moody, Daniel Vettori and Simon Katich will provide an insider`s view on the game, analysing tactics and plays.
The panel will also boast of legendary Indian openers with contrasting batting and commentary styles - Sunil Gavaskar and Virender Sehwag. Adding to the diversity and stature to the broadcast ranks will be Mithali Raj, one of the greatest women cricketers of all time.
Four-time IPL and two-time World Champion Harbhajan Singh will be joined by Mohammad Kaif.
The strong line-up also includes former India all-rounder and winner of ICC T20 World Cup 2007 - Irfan Pathan.
Making his debut on Star Sports` panel will be Irfan`s brother, two-time World champion and one of the most impactful IPL players ever - Yusuf Pathan.
Former India opener and three-time IPL champion Murali Vijay makes a foray into sports broadcasting for the first time ever and will be joined by Laxmipathy Balaji, who also has three IPL titles to his name, two as player and one as member of the CSK coaching staff.
The strong title winners` list also includes Subramaniam Badrinath, who won two titles with CSK. S Sreesanth also joins the elite ranks of experts and will infuse his infectious energy to the most watched Cricket show in India - Cricket Live.
Along with Sunil Gavaskar, 1983 World Cup winners Sandeep Patil and Kris Srikkanth also join Star Sports` panel, adding a unique generational perspective to the broadcast.
The Telugu feed brings an unmatched viewing experience with a line-up of commentators which includes former IPL champions - Venugopal Rao and T Suman, who tasted success in 2009 with Deccan Chargers and Ashish Reddy, who won the title in 2016 with Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Former Chief Selector of the Indian Cricket team - MSK Prasad - joins them to elevate the Telugu broadcast. Kalyan Krishna joins the ranks of elite former Cricketers to capture and celebrate the action and excitement of India`s biggest Cricketing festival.
The Kannada commentary panel features former Indian cricketer Vijay Bharadwaj, Srinivasa Murthy (Jaani), former Karnataka coach GK Anil Kumar, former RCB trio Balachandra Akhil, Bharat Chipli and Pavan Deshpande along with Karnataka legend Gundappa Vishwanath. Current Big Boss (Kannada) winner Roopesh Shetty too joins the Kannada feed as he makes his debut into sports broadcasting.
Former Indian cricketer Amol Muzumdar leads the broadcast in Marathi while former India cricketer Nayan Mongia will lead the ranks of Gujarati experts. The Malayalam and Bengali feeds will be led by two former Indian pacers in Tinu Yohanan and Ashoke Dinda respectively. (With IANS inputs)
