“Cricketers are willing to be the game changers” – Pramodya Wickremasinghe
Former National cricket star Pramodya Wickremasinghe, who was a member of Sri Lanka’s 1996 ICC World Cup winning effort, says that more than 80 percent of the former international cricketers are ready to unite in an effort to clean up the of cricket in Sri Lanka.
Wickramasinghe reveals a tigh-lipped secret - Pic by Amila Gamage
Speaking ‘exclusively’ to the Sunday Times, Wickremasinghe said that former national stars, together with a host of prominent entrepreneurs who include high profile names such as Muttiah Muralitharan, Roshan Mahanama and Sidath Wettimuny, to name a few, are willing to shoulder the wheel to bring about some sanity into the game of cricket, which is gradually slipping way below the ICC rankings of Afghanistan and Bangladesh.
A disgruntled Wickremasinghe said, “There is a large gathering of high-profile ex-national cricketers who want to have a say in the fate of the game. The list also includes some of the big names who are employed by Sri Lanka Cricket at present, but are bit coy because of their employment contracts; but the day won’t be long before they start talking.”
He said that at present the election system at Sri Lanka Cricket has been fine-tuned by some politicians as well as cricket administrators, so that it would make things easy for people in the gaming industry and the media business to survive in the Sri Lanka Cricket Administration. Their agenda had been aided and abated by people who hold very high political office.
Wickremasinghe added, “For instance Arjuna Ranatunga being one of those former cricketers who have been very critical about the present status of the game in Sri Lanka is a senior government member holding a cabinet portfolio, but even he is powerless to effect any changes in the prevailing structure.”
He also explained that the SLC hierarchy is gloating about the Rs. Billion plus generated, but, most of that monies came through FTP agreements that made in 2014. The only significant income generating move made by the present SLC administration was only the Nidahas Trophy where the Lankans even could not enter the final of a Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, India Triangular.
Then he also queried: “In recent times they have made several changes to the Sports Act and some of them have made a direct impact on cricket. But, at the same time, did the minister of sports effect any legislation for a cricketer retiring the game to get involved? I do not think so. Yet, they have brought legislation to keep them out by adopting regulations, like having to complete two years in office to be eligible to hold SLC office”.
He said that what they need is a voice in cricket because the game is gradually slipping down to the point of no return. He said, “We are aware at one point of time the Prime Minister was keen to bring about a solution to the impasse, but that too was thwarted at the eleventh hour.
“As cricketers who are concerned about the game what we are seeking is an audience with the highest authorities of the country – the President and the Prime Minister and make them listen to the voice of cricket. All what we are asking is to appoint a committee to run the game for a given period of time – I mean the cricketers – and change the constitution of Sri Lanka Cricket so that it would be easy for the people who are concerned about the game to be stakeholders and they will be the game changers.”