BIPIN DANI
Sri Lankan sports minister Roshan Ranasinghe has decided to appoint a 6-member Fact Finding Committee to enquire not only about the players' behaviour in T-20 World Cup in Australia but also to ascertain whether the officials showed "real concerns" for the team members.
Speaking exclusively over the telephone from Dubai, where he is on a one-day visit, he said, "we have appointed a 6-member committee to report on the recent issues. The committee will be chaired by the Former High Court Judge Kusala Sarojini. One former cricketer is also in the committee. The other members of the committee are: Former ministerial secretary - Kingsley Fernando, Retired DIG in CID - Sudath Nagahamulla, Retired Rear Admiral - Ananda Peiris, Former cricketer - Nalin de Alwis and Attorney-at-Law - Shalani Roshana".
"No time-frame is given to the committee but will ask the members to expedite the process".
The minister also expressed his concern over the issues handled for Chamika Karunaratne. The 26-year-old has been given a one-year-suspended ban by the SLC.
"He was dropped for his poor form or bad behaviour? He has been cleared to play international cricket. My opinion is that if the player is in poor form or facing disciplinary action, he should not be considered at all".
The bowling all-rounder has already been named in the LPL team.
"I will ensure that from next year onwards any out of form player or player facing disciplinary charges is not selected even to play league cricket".
During his recent Dubai visit, which is mainly for the Rugby sports, the minister has no plan to meet the ICC at this stage.
"No, I am not meeting any ICC officials now but will certainly meet them in near future", he added.
The minister also denied the plan to appoint any interim committee but hinted there will be many changes in the year 2023.
"We want the right people for all sports. Arjuna Ranatunga is helping me a lot and will continue to consult him for all important matters. We want to streamline everything. Cricket is a very popular sport in our country and will ensure public money put in the game is not wasted", the minister concluded.
