Friday Jun 12, 2026
Friday Jun 12, 2026
Monday, 18 May 2026 00:14 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
By Sa’adi Thawfeeq
Talks held between International Cricket Council (ICC) delegation Deputy Chairman Imran Khwaja, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Secretary Devajit Saikia, and the Government-appointed Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) Transformation Committee were said to be “cordial and very productive.”
The ICC sent its delegation to Sri Lanka following the appointment of a nine-man SLC Transformation Committee by Sports Minister Sunil Kumara Gamage on 29 June after the elected SLC body, headed by Shammi Silva, resigned en masse.
Although no official statement was given by the Sports Minister for the mass resignation, it is widely believed that it took place after SLC President Silva had talks with the country’s President Anura Kumara Dissanayake.
“We told them that we are not here on a witch hunt or anything like that. We are here to put the cricket right and get the constitution going. The ICC was very happy with our approach,” sources close to the SLC Transformation Committee stated. “The talks were confidential but it was cordial and very productive. They told us a few things which are very confidential but we are happy with the discussions. We have to fall in line with the ICC rules and regulations. We told the ICC that we are totally transparent with nothing to hide.”
“The ICC has come to understand that the Committee comprises people of certain standing with a lot of credentials in each area who want to see the country’s cricket put back on the right track to success,” the source added.
The Transformation Committee is headed by former MP Eran Wickramaratne and comprises former Sri Lanka cricketers Sidath Wettimuny, Roshan Mahanama, and Kumar Sangakkara, Prakash Schaffter, Dinal Phillips (PC), Avanthi Colombage, Thushira Raddella, and Upul Kumarapperuma (PC).
“We didn’t want to commit ourselves to any sort of time frame because once the new constitution is drafted, it has to go to Parliament and it can be debated, Third Reading, and so on. All that is going to take time. We have got the Attorney General and Legal Draftsman on board and it all depends on their load of work. We are going by the Chitrasiri Committee report.”
No official statement has been issued by SLC or ICC regarding the visit.
The ICC generally views Government intervention into the country’s cricket body as being contrary to its regulations, although the Sri Lanka Sports Law allows the Minister to appoint interim committees.
In the meantime, the SLC Transformation Committee has written to the SLC membership – all associate, affiliated, and controlling clubs, district, employment, and provincial cricket associations – for written proposals for the implementation of a new constitution.
Proposals have been invited for Governance Structure, Financial Accountability, Broadcast, Commercial and Sponsorship Development, Grassroots Development, and High Performance.
The deadline for submissions is 5 June.
