"Will Conduct An...": LLC Organisers Break Silence On Gautam Gambhir-Sreesanth Row

Surat (Gujarat) :

With respect to an incident that occurred on the field during the match between Gujarat Giants player Sreesanth and India Capitals skipper Gautam Gambhir on Wednesday at Lalbhai Contractor Stadium and subsequent interactions on social media, Legends League Cricket (LLC) made their official stand very clear to uphold the spirit of the game both on and off the field. On Thursday morning, a video of an argument between these two former Indian players emerged. Gautam, leading India Capitals could be seen in an argument with the former Indian pacer who was playing for Gujarat. Other players and the umpire had to separate the two.

After the heated argument, Sreesanth accused ex-teammate Gambhir of calling him a "fixer" during a verbal spat. Sreesanth posted a video on Instagram and said, "A lot of people have been asking me what happened. I am not going to spend a lot of PR to spread wrong news. I came live to clear the air. I am just a normal person, God has been kind to me, have fought my battles by myself, with the help of loved ones and your support. On live TV, on the centre wicket, he called me a fixer...fixer...fixer. I did not use any abusive words, just questioned him, "what are you saying". I just laughed sarcastically. He even said the same language to the umpires even though I moved away."

Though Gambhir has not offered any direct, clear-cut clarity on the matter, he did seem to throw shade on the former Indian pacer on social media. Gambhir posted a cryptic tweet on Thursday. Interestingly, Gambhir's tweet came out just hours later after a video of him emerged on social media in which he was seen arguing with former Indian pacer Sreesanth in the Legends League Cricket (LLC) match between India Capitals and Gujarat Giants.

Smile when the world is all about attention! pic.twitter.com/GCvbl7dpnX

"Smile when the world is all about attention!" said the caption of Gambhir's post, in which featured a picture of him smiling.

On Thursday LLC also issued a statement regarding the argument between the two players and said they will conduct an internal investigation on the violation of the code of conduct.

"The incident that has been the talk in the cricketing world violates the code of conduct and necessary action will be taken against all that have violated the very clear rules stated by the league's Code of Conduct and Ethics Committee," LLC said in an official statement.

"Legends League Cricket strives to uphold the spirit of cricket and sportsmanship and will conduct an internal investigation on the violation of the code of conduct. Any misconduct that has occurred both on and off the field including on social media platforms will be dealt with strictly. The code of conduct has clearly states that necessary action will be taken against players that bring disrepute to the league, the spirit of the game and the teams that they are representing. We make our stand very clear and continue to work towards sharing the game with millions of cricketing lovers across the nation and world," Syed Kirmani, Head of Code of Conduct & Ethics Committee, Legends League Cricket said in an official statement.

"All players contracted in the Legends League Cricket are bound by certain terms related to misconduct and necessary action will be taken as per the codes of conduct laid down by the Code of Conduct & Ethics Committee. We are taking appropriate action against the breach of contract." Raman Raheja, CEO of Legends League Cricket said.

"Unfortunately, this incident that is making the rounds on social media pulls focus if only for a short time away from what has so far been an extremely exciting season so far with national and international legends playing together for their respective teams. Legends League Cricket aims to continue to be focused on the league itself and let the ASCU and Code of Conduct & Ethics Committee handle the internal investigation and subsequent action with respect to the involved individual/s that will be held in violation of the code of conduct for their comments including ones made on social media," LLC further stated in an official release.

Sreesanth also accused former India opener Gambhir of behaving badly with other players as well. Notably, Sreesanth was involved in the spot-fixing scandal in 2013 when he used to play for Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League. He along with Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan were arrested by Delhi Police for their involvement in the scandal.

Upon investigation, the 36-year-old bowler was found guilty by the BCCI and the board imposed a life ban on the cricketer. The cricketer challenged the BCCI's decision in the Kerala High Court which upheld the life ban. The Supreme Court in March 2019 set aside the life ban imposed on cricketer S Sreesanth by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and asked the cricket body to reconsider his plea within three months.