Sports Minister Harin Fernando has withdrawn the decision to suspend the Sri Lanka Cricket Board (SLC). Fernando confirmed this information in a post on X. At the same time, he expressed hope that the International Cricket Council (ICC) will soon lift the ban on SLC.
The ICC banned the SLC mainly because of the government’s interference in the cricket board. This time the ICC may lift the ban as a result of a change in the government’s decision. However, nothing has been reported from the ICC in this regard yet.
Expressing the hope of returning to Sri Lankan cricket, Fernando wrote, “I signed a gazette today to withdraw the decision to appoint an interim committee in Sri Lankan cricket with the aim of lifting the ICC ban on us.”
The then Sports Minister Roshan Ranasinghe dismissed the SLC citing the failure of the World Cup. ICC sacked SLC after government interference in cricket board. The country’s cricket board has also punished him for his decision. President Ranil Wickremesinghe dismissed Roshan from the cabinet on November 27.
Earlier on November 10, the ICC banned Sri Lankan cricket for a temporary period. Their membership was stripped due to political interference in the country’s cricket board. After that the ban was upheld in the last meeting of the ICC.
The upcoming U-19 World Cup has been moved away from the Lankans as they are not getting their membership back. The move has deprived them of US$2.4 million in ICC grants. This money was supposed to be spent on developing the venue for the tournament.
Meanwhile, despite the ICC ban, SLC can conduct all types of cricket activities on its own soil.
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