Cabinet sub-committee submits report on cricket to President

President vows to present report and draft Sports Bill to Parliament

By Darshana Sanjeewa Balasuriya

The Cabinet Sub-Committee, led by Foreign Minister Ali Sabry, tasked with investigating issues within Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), submitted its report to President Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday.

The committee, appointed in November 2023, had a specific mandate to assess the current state of affairs in SLC, collaborating with stakeholders and seeking input from esteemed former cricketers.

The primary goal of this sub-committee was to propose immediate and practical measures to address the existing challenges in Sri Lanka Cricket.
President Wickremesinghe, upon accepting the report, expressed his commitment to implementing the outlined recommendations.

He informed that both the report and a new draft Sports Bill would be presented to the Parliament in the near future, the President's Media Division said.

The report is said to have been compiled against the backdrop of the current crisis, taking into account opinions and recommendations from various key entities.

These include insights from Sports Minister Harin Fernando, former Sports Ministers, the Secretary to the Ministry of Sports, Sri Lanka Cricket Board, coaches of the Sri Lanka National Cricket Teams (Women's/Men's), umpires, the Cricket Selection Committee, coaches of under-19 cricket teams, the Technical Advisory Committee, current cricketers, including Wanidu Hasaranga, the Sri Lanka Umpires Association, the Sri Lanka Bar Association, the Auditor General's office, and the Chitrasiri Committee.

The other members of the sub-committee include Minister of Power and Energy Kanchana Wijesekara, Minister of Labour & Foreign Employment Manusha Nanayakkara, and Minister of Public Security Tiran Alles.

President appointed this committee after former Sports Minister Roshan Ranasinghe appointed an interim committee headed by former cricket captain Arjuna Ranatunga.