The length to which the administration of Sri Lanka Cricket and its once adored team has broken down could not be explained any better than what has now come to light that players have attempted to bribe fitness trainers with booze and food in return to pass them worthy of a place in the team.
An investigation by the Sunday Observer has revealed that the ruse had been going on for some time and Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) despite its pompous boasts of taking the sport into the future have in fact being taken for a ride by corrupted players who see their keepers in an “absolute mess” according to former team assistants.
“Don’t be surprised at what is happening, the boys are running the show and the keepers of cricket are merely surviving for self gain. The moment you open your mouth and point out the wrong, they (SLC officials) knock you out as you don’t suit their agenda. Only the ‘yes men’ survive,” said a former player who worked with the team.
A Sri Lanka Cricket source told the Sunday Observer that officials at Sri Lanka Cricket turned a blind eye to a breakdown in discipline as some of their own officials have got question marks against their name, some guilty of match-fixing at club level.
“It’s not the players that have to be blamed, but the big wings entrusted with running the sport. The players are merely cashing in and exploiting an administration that has several blacks marks to hide,” he said.
He said the conduct of some of the current administrators have only matched the ways of some of the players, meaning money and financial gain being foremost among both parties.
Asked if he was aware of the reports of “fitness fixing”, Sri Lanka Cricket president Shammi Silva said he was looking into the matter.
“I have been made aware of it and we are investigating,” said Silva.
But pressed for further comment on whether he was shocked at what was happening, Silva said: “We are looking into this at department level. We have to go by reports of the team Selectors and the High Performance section. Only then can we find out”.