IPL spot-fixing case: Sreesanth and teammates cleared

Ajit Chandila, Shanthakumaran Sreesanth and Ankeet Chavan spoke of their relief

Indian fast bowler Shanthakumaran Sreesanth has been cleared of spot-fixing in the Indian Premier League (IPL) by a court in Delhi.

Sreesanth and his team-mates from the Rajasthan Royals, Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan, were accused of cheating in 2013.

The players maintained their innocence and on Saturday a court dropped all charges due to lack of evidence.

Speaking afterwards Sreesanth said: "It's a huge relief."

"I have nothing against anybody. God willing I will return to cricket," he told India's NDTV network.

Chandila said "a bad dream" had come to an end while Chavan said he was looking forward to playing again.

The players were arrested in 2013 along with more than a dozen bookkeepers as part of a police investigation into spot fixing.

Sreesanth, who represented India in 27 Tests and 53 one-day internationals, was alleged to have underperformed in exchange for money in an IPL match.

Sreesanth previously spoke of his confidence in the judicial process

His fellow bowlers were accused of accepting similar deals in two other games.

Spot-fixing involves illegally rigging parts of a match, for example by timing the delivery of a deliberate wide or no-ball, to benefit bookmakers or those betting on matches.

Police said the players communicated using codes like "rotating their watches" and "putting towels in their pants".

They were banned for life by the Board of Control for Cricket in India following the allegations.

Speaking outside court on Saturday, a defence lawyer said: "The judge has passed the order and discharged all the players. There is no case against the players now."

The Rajasthan Royals team are owned by Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty and her businessman husband Raj Kundra.