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Wednesday, 27 June 2018 01:05 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
AFP: World Cup-winning skipper Arjuna Ranatunga on Tuesday accused Sri Lanka Cricket of mishandling a ball tampering scandal that saw national captain Dinesh Chandimal fined and banned for a match.
Ranatunga, who has aspirations of heading the board, said the island’s cricket officials were to blame for the misconduct that saw Sri Lanka’s skipper, coach and manager penalised during the second Test against the West Indies.
Chandimal was caught on camera applying a substance to the ball and was later found guilty of changing the condition of the ball.
There were concerns that the Test match in St Lucia was in jeopardy when Chandimal refused to lead his team onto the field after he was informed of the charge, causing a two-hour delay.
Sri Lanka’s coach Chandika Hathurusingha, manager Asanka Gurusingha and skipper were later charged with violating the spirit of the game over the protest.
“There is no one at the cricket board to advise the team,” Ranatunga said.
“If they knew that Chandimal had done something wrong, they should have worked out an amicable solution without escalating the problem.” Chandimal lost his appeal Friday against ball tampering and is out of the third and final Test currently underway in Barbados.
He was slapped with two suspension points and fined 100 per cent of his match fee for applying an artificial substance to the ball in violation of the ICC Code of Conduct during the 2nd Test.
The sport’s global governing body is due to rule on possible further sanctions against Chandimal and the two officials on 10 July.
Ranatunga, who in January 1999 held up play for 12 minutes during a Test match against England during an altercation with an umpire, said the two scenarios were not comparable.
He led Sri Lanka to World Cup victory in 1996. More recently, he has set his sights on winning a seat on Sri Lanka’s cricket board but he failed to secure a berth two years ago.
The board lurched from one controversy to the next in recent years, with allegations of match fixing and corruption compounding the team’s worst streak on record.
ESPNCricinfo: An ambulance had to be rushed on to the field of play on Monday after Kusal Perera hurt himself while attempting a catch at the long-on boundary. He was immediately rushed to hospital for a scan.
“He was cleared of any serious injury,” the Sri Lankan team manager Asanka Gurusinha said, “But we will have to see how he comes up tomorrow morning before making a decision. He is very sore.”
The incident occurred in the 29th over, with West Indies reeling on 82 for 9. Kusal intercepted a slog, but lost control with the momentum from his leap taking him beyond the boundary. He overbalanced and crashed into the advertising hoardings, landing awkwardly on his front.
Kusal immediately clutched his chest and signalled for assistance. Play was halted and dinner break was taken.
With an hour to go for stumps, it was confirmed by the official broadcasters that Kusal was still under observation in hospital and wouldn’t bat for the remainder of the day. In his absence, Danushka Gunathilaka and Mahela Udawatte opened in Sri Lanka’s quest to chase down 144.
