News
No decision on 2024 Under-19 World Cup yet as SLC suspension row rumbles on
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) president Shammi Silva has warned that the country could lose out on hosting the men’s Under-19 World Cup in January and February if the ICC’s suspension of SLC was not lifted. He also said the ICC wanted to suspend Sri Lanka back in July, but he prevented it.
However, ESPNcricinfo understands the ICC has not yet made a decision on the U-19 World Cup and will discuss the hosting of that tournament only at the next board meeting on November 21. It is learned that there was also no discussion within the ICC of suspending SLC in July.
According to Silva, ICC deputy chairman Imran Khwaja had taken special interest in potential political interference in Sri Lanka. “About five months ago, the ICC came here when there was news of political interference, and held an inquiry,” Silva said. “Mr. Imran Khwaja met the minister and the president (of Sri Lanka), and told them the ICC would be taking it seriously if you don’t properly control this. This [the suspension] is not something that happening in one or two days.
According to information that ESPNcricinfo has, it is only after SLC complained to the ICC about political interference in November 2022 that Khwaja travelled to Sri Lanka on a fact-finding mission. It is understood the ICC did not find prima facie evidence of direct interference at the time.
The background to this issue is that SLC and the country’s sports minister Roshan Ranasinghe have been in conflict over the past year, with Ranasinghe making accusations of corruption and mismanagement in the cricket board, while Silva and SLC accuse him of meddling with cricket.
Both Silva and Ranasinghe held media interactions separately on Saturday afternoon; both parties sometimes making personal insults. In Silva’s press conference at SLC headquarters, he stressed that both the ICC and SLC seek assurance from the highest level of Sri Lankan politics – the president of the country, essentially – that there would be no further political interference in the running of cricket in Sri Lanka.
Though Silva and his elected board are currently at the helm at SLC, their place remains precarious, It is only the result of a 14-day stay order delivered by Sri Lanka’s courts, which reversed Ranasinghe’s appointment of an interim committee led by Arjuna Ranatunga on Monday to run SLC.
Ranasinghe, meanwhile, outlined the sports ministry’s next steps as it attempts to have SLC’s suspension lifted by the ICC. He said the ministry would approach the ICC’s dispute resolution committee first, which is a body within the ICC that reviews appeals from boards on membership matters. If that process fails, Ranasinghe said, the ministry would look at pursuing a case at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland.
On the home front, the ministry will seek a jugdement from Sri Lanka’s own courts that reinstall the minister’s Ranatunga-led interim committee.
It is Silva who is understood to have sought SLC’s suspension, as a means of putting pressure on the Sri Lankan government. When asked directly about this at the press conference, he said: “I’ve already said this was something that was going to happen for five months. If I can pull strings like that, I’ve got to be an impressive person.
Earlier in the day, SLC’s vice president Ravin Wickramaratne told ESPNcricinfo: “As a full member, it is our right to go to the ICC.”
(Cricinfo)
Ratnapura District SJB MP Hesha Withanage yesterday tabled several documents in Parliament to substantiate his allegations against Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC). He presented an Executive Committee meeting minute, claiming that according to it, payments to IGP Deshabandu Tennakoon had been approved.
The MP said that the SLC Executive Committee had appointed Tennakoon, the then Senior Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of the Western Province, as an Advisor to the Security Consultant of Sri Lanka Cricket.
The contract, effective from August 16, 2021, included a monthly allowance of Rs. 150,000, 200 litres of fuel per month, a Rs. 5,000 mobile phone allowance, a laptop, a mobile phone, and medical insurance, MP Withanage told Parliament.
The MP tabled the document in the House in response to SLC’s recent denial of his claims. The SLC had previously dismissed allegations that Tennakoon had been paid or provided with perks, calling them baseless and false.
The SLC denial came after Withanage, commencing the Committee Stage budget debate under the Head of Expenditure of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, claimed on Tuesday (18) that IGP Tennakoon had been on the payroll of SLC.
MP Withanage criticised the government, stating it had no intention of preventing the accused group from contesting the upcoming SLC election on 31 March. He also accused the current Sports Minister of supporting a corrupt faction within SLC and announced plans to take legal action over the matter.
“This denial by SLC is irrelevant,” Withanage said. “We have a copy of the report approved by the Executive Committee.”
By Saman Indrajith
Election Commission (EC) Chairman R.M.A.L. Ratnayake yesterday announced that the Local Government (LG) elections would be held on 6 May 2025.The date was revealed during a special media briefing following the conclusion of the submission of nominations for LG polls.
Nominations for 336 LG institutions, which began on 17 March, were officially closed at 12:00 noon yesterday. Additionally, the deadline for placing deposits ended at midnight on 19 March.The EC said 17,296,330 persopns were eligible to vote in this year’s LG elections.
by Ranil Dharmasena
The Sri Lanka Navy conducted a successful shipwreck expedition from 10 to 17 March focusing on historically significant shipwrecks located in the sea area off the coast of Colombo.
The expedition was carried out to document the current state of numerous shipwrecks lying beneath the waves, off Colombo. The survey included the Coal Wreck, Chief Dragon Car Carrier, MV Astoria, MT Nilgiri, Thermopylae Sierra, MV Pecheur Breton, Taprobane East Wreck, SS Worcestershire, Toilet Barge, SS Perseus and some other unidentified wrecks, according to the Navy.
Navy divers explored a series of shipwrecks, including the historically significant SS Worcestershire and SS Perseus, both sunk during World War I. Beyond their historical value, the wrecks of the Chief Dragon Car Carrier and Thermopylae Sierra are now functioning as thriving artificial reefs, providing habitats for a variety of marine species.
A total of 14 diving officers and 15 diving sailors participated in this intensive shipwreck expedition. They used both atmospheric air and nitrox air mix as breathing agents, depending on depth and dive duration. This enhanced safety and efficiency, particularly for deeper and more complex dives.
Showers above 50 mm can be expected at some places in Western and Sabaragamuwa provinces and in Galle and Matara districts.
‘Deshabandu is on SLC payroll’; Hesha tables documents
LG polls on 06 May
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