Sri Lanka minister orders probe into Sangakkara comments
COLOMBO (Reuters) – Sri Lanka’s sports minister has ordered a probe into former captain Kumar Sangakkara’s comments about the island nation’s cricket administrators and political meddling during his speech to Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) members at Lord’s on Monday.
Sangakkara was given a standing ovation after delivering the annual Spirit of Cricket Cowdrey Lecture in which he recounted the history of cricket in Sri Lanka, ranging from the country’s emergence as a test-match playing nation, their 1996 World Cup triumph and the attack on their team bus in Pakistan in 2009.
The prolific 33-year-old batsman, who has scored over 8000 runs in 97 tests, also attacked the way the sport is run in Sri Lanka, a move that brought immediate response back home.
“He is contract player. He has signed an agreement with Sri Lanka Cricket and he can’t make a statement like that,” Sports Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage told Reuters.
“He has to get permission. He can’t talk about the cricket administration or cricket. He can say anything about him.
“I have written to the chairman of the cricket board to go into this and get me a report immediately.”
Sri Lanka is among three countries that have been given up to two years to reorganise their boards after the International Cricket Council ordered its members to free themselves from government interference or face sanctions.
Sangakkara, who resigned as Sri Lanka captain after their World Cup final defeat to India in April, said cricket in his country had “no consistent and clear administration”.
“After 1996, the cricket board has been controlled and administered by a handful of well-meaning individuals either personally or by proxy rotated in and out depending on appointment or election,” Sangakkara said.
“Unfortunately to consolidate and perpetuate their power, they opened the door of the administration to partisan cronies that would lead to corruption and wonton waste of cricket board finances and resources.
“We have to aspire better administration. The administration needs to adopt the same values enshrined by the team over the years; integrity, transparency, commitment, and discipline.”
Reuters
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Sangha has only expressed what the whole country is aware of. Sri Lanka cricket is heavily influenced by corrupt govt officials and administrators. Talented players feel frustrated and fed up of plaing well as they are prevented from doing so by corrupt officials and political interference.interference in order to handover the cup to the Indians.
World cup finals should have been rightly won by us but prevented from doing so by a sudden change of the team through corrupt political interference, as heavy betting was involved and India cannot ‘lose face’. SL may have won the world cup but may have succumbed to heavy political losses in its relationship with India.
The statement made by sanga is 100% true.but others of sri lankan cricket fear to revealthat.unfortunately,ministers and other political officials couldn’t understand that due to political view.therefore it should be done proper investigation and medical test regarding their brain and what have done for sri lankan cricket not for the sanga’s statement.
Sangha is not a fool. He knew exactly what he was saying. He chose the right place and right moment to make the allegation. SL Cricket administrators and politician got eggs in their faces. Sure, they will try to take disiplinery action against Sangha just to keep others silent (like Mahela). It is also interesting to know the states of remarks made by Hashan too.
Sangakara comments like small children given.No any politicians push for sri lankan criketers at all,this player doing somethings miracle way.if he don`t want to play the game he should resign and go home.There are many young good players waiting to chance play for national criket team.
This Sangakara not my any favourite player,some time his action i not happy to see.He thing he is great nobody can replace him.
When this players time over then after they running after politicians back,now they speaking differents way then afterword.
What sangakkara said is 100% true. All of cricket lovers in the country feels “Sri Lanka Cricket” is the most corupted agency in Sri Lanka. SANGA will gang by poluted politician soon. The year we won the world cup in 1996 less than 10 members of staff worked in the Sri Lanka Cricket. But now it is mre than 250. See only 11 players earning to run this much of crue. Owful. Shame of us.
Sanga you are a hero.
Real LION.
Anyone can see his speech at any angle. But sanga has no fucking right to speak so as still being under sl cricket.
This’s what the same done by SF too. Here sanga has gone to uk to critiseiz GOSL too. But this’s not a wander because some backless Srilankans were exallant & fluent in betraying since the past.
The relations of those betrayers are praise to sanga as they can’t see this fucking BETRAYEL under the fucking cricket..!
Why couldn’t he speak out here & went to slave drivers land to speak..? Is if a fucking deaf one..!
What’s the fucking cricket will do for us, even if we don’t have cricket at all..? Can people eat or drink cricket to the hunger..?
It’s just a fucking useless game only eats money & time both..!
Such a mother fucking game caused this fool to betray the country in front of fucking foreigners…!
How many burning matters are we face currently here more than fucking cricket..?
Well said Sanga… Some one has to say this and you had the courage and strength… All the best you bro..
Mr.Amden.
then who the F* has authority to tell about somthing rottning inside our country? ministers!!
did you listn to the full speach?..there is nothing bad about SL. no betrayel as you see.if you listn till to the end you’ll not bark like this. SL should be proude of him.
Dear Mr aluthgamage. you are the 1st resposible person to have very bad administation with you. you care only politics. even Mr rajapaksa same way. you damage all sri lanka. realy dont think that finish the war & you can do all bad work after that. respect sanga he is 1000 times better person than you for we all sri lankan. he is our hero. in front of him you are nothing. your gavermrnt using political power in very bad way. realy shame for you man
I dont see anything wrong in Kumar Sangakkara’s speech. But, the time and venue was not good for such speech.
In fact, the politics in Cricket is an open secret every one knows about it, but no one wants to talk about it.
Mohamed Shareef Asees
Well said Sanga !! We Sri Lankans are with you all the way !!! These politician fools should all rot in hell. You are a hero.
Sanga’s speech din not refer the corruption in the cricket board only. His speech had a lot more than the cricket board with a few suttle hints to show the world about our hospitality, mentality, life style, and most importanantly that most Sri Lankans lived in harmony with the tamils before this stupid war was stareted by that barbarian Prabhakaran.
I think he did an excellent job. We all knew why Sri Lanka lost the world cup and we all knew for a long time that the cricket board was useless but he is the only one who had the courage to say so/.
Hi All,
Sanga has spoken the truth. The people who have given negative comments against Sanga are the political crawlers.
Yaseer… are you living in SL somewhere else… ?? all know too much of a politics involve in sri Lankan Cricket… may be deaf and blind person…. POLEK…
There’re so many BITTER TRUTHS in every country in the world.!
But there’s a TIME also to say any fucking truth usefully..!
Is that a fucking time 4 him to speak of corruption in sl when he’s in uk…?
Amda although I do agree with you about the timing and the place we must ask our selves did Sanga choose this purticular monent and event because of the power cricket has in Sri Lannka.Is he using the ICC to shield him against any repercussins.
Is It because any accusations pointed towards the governing ministers are ignored.How can S/L pcricket possibly loose so much money in the world cup?. I am a big suppoeter of Our President His Exellency Mr Rajapaksa but I am not sure about the currupt some of the currupt around him.
I do apologise about my lat sentence I meant some of the currupt guys around him.
well said sanga
I know how hard it was to get our test status way back in the 80 then everyone worked for the betterment of the players and the game with no personal gains expected we have seen true heroes in the past like the Hon minister Gamini Dissanayake who really worked hard for the sport of cricket a well mannered well educated son of mother Lanka then the past Captains as of Bandula Warnapura Duleep Mendis Arjuna Ranatunga Sanath Jayasuriya Mahela and Sangakkara the root to all problems is when politics enters into things then its all becomes upside down. ministers are appointed to the sports minister what qualifications do they have do they really know the how many types of balls there are in the game of sports
The main thing is it took a courages gentleman to get our test status and another to make everyone open their eyes of the shortcomings and blunders and corruption that occur now they could be called gentleman as both of them are true Lions.
Gama… Icc can’t secure him if gosl act against him. Can he keep his place while talking against the govt where he’s under..! Cricket is an additional problem here 4 us, while having many serious problems in the country…
Amda. Whether Sanga can keep his place in the team was the first thing that came to my mind. I am sure he has thought of that and perhaps he has a plan B.You know what else came to my mind Amda. I thought he is a very brave guy or this is the first step that he made to beeing a politician (it is ony a thought and I could be wrong). If he does become a politician I hope he will serve the country with Intergrity, Transparncy and honesty.
We certainly are having a lot of issues in the country and we hope our president can weed out the rotten ones from his administration or else every good thing he is doing or trying to do will be overshadowed by the wrong doings of the currupt few. Let us all hope it is a few who are currupt.