It's not always a smooth entry into the system after being tainted but Saurashtra's veteran seamer Siddharth Trivedi has been "accepted" by everyone, says team's coach Shitanshu Kotak.
The BCCI banned Trivedi for a year as he broke association's anti-corruption code by not reporting the approaches by bookmakers while playing for Rajasthan Royals during the sixth edition of the Indian Premier League.
"There is absolutely no problem with Siddharth. He played in the Vijay Hazare Trophy after returning from ban. He has been welcomed with open arms. There are no undercurrents in the dressing room regarding his presence," Kotak, a veteran of 130 first-class matches, told reporters ahead of Saurashtra's Ranji Trophy opener against Delhi, here tomorrow.
For Kotak, what happened with Trivedi was basically an "error of judgement" and he feels that the bowler is not at fault.
"Look, when you speak to the player, you can gauge whether he is feeling guilty or not. Whatever happened, if you look at it, he didn't feel the need to report the matter. It happens with players. We hear a lot of things but we tend to ignore a lot of these things. We feel that it might just blow out of proportion if we discuss such things. That's exactly what happened with Siddharth," explained Kotak.
"Today, we are all scared to talk to strangers. You guys are asking questions as journalists but if tomorrow you people are embroiled in any controversy, how do I know that?" Kotak counter questioned.
Did he have a session with Trivedi once he joined the team after serving out the one-year ban, Kotak said, "I didn't have to because the situation didn't warrant any. What I was more worried was that Siddharth was horribly short of match practice.
"He couldn't use any BCCI facilities because of the ban. He would only do gym-work to keep himself fit. But just doing gym isn't enough. He needed to do a lot of bowling in match situations. He came back in district championship and then did reasonably well in Hazare Trophy. Now he has a lot of experience so he knows what is required at this level," said Kotak said referring to Trivedi, who has 260 first-class wickets from 78 matches.
