Sri Lanka Cricket Board Postpone Newly Proposed T20 League
Jul 16, 2018 at 2:04 PM
Sri Lanka’s newly proposed T20 league suffered a major setback after board’s decision to postpone it. The SLC has revealed the tournament is postponed indefinitely on Sunday in a statement.
The LPL was supposed to be held during August-September but with current developments, it might not happen in foreseeable future.
The new league can only take place when a newly elected body takes over at the helm. The revised dates for the league will be announced by the new administrators once they are elected.
“Sri Lanka Cricket wishes to inform that the LPL (T20) has been postponed indefinitely, until an elected body is constituted at the SLC,” the statement said.
Back in May, the apex court in Sri Lanka had dismissed the elections for SLC board. However, Sports Minister, Faiszer Musthapha appointed a special body to oversee the operations of the board until the fresh elections take place.
But the board elections are not taking place because Thilanga Sumathipala was deemed unfit for reelection, as per Nishantha Ranatunga. Nishantha Ranatunga, Thilanga Sumathipala are the two candidates in the foray for the elections.
But Ranatunga accuses Sumathipala of violating International Cricket Council regulations by holding office. The claims come after the latter was accused of involving in gambling. Sumathipala did acknowledge that his family business is linked with gambling, but he has no role in it.
He also insists he is not breaching any of ICC regulations. Despite the ongoing political war in SLC, it is the cricket that is getting affected the most. It is the third time the league was canceled out in four attempts.
Sri Lankan cricket in Transition
The only successful attempt led to LPL in 2012. However, problems in administration and lack of sponsors back then had not helped the continuation of the league.
The board tried to get the league back on track after six years, but their efforts now went in vain. It remains to see how Sri Lankan cricket will go forward after the events that had been unfolding over the past couple of years.
There are huge boots to fill in Sri Lankan cricket at the moment after the retirements of some stalwarts. The young side is currently making progress but not at the desired level.