Selection chief talks of conspiracy to destroy Sri Lanka cricket

Chairman of cricket selectors Pramodya Wickramasinghe

• Appointment of a new Sports Minister was a perfect opportunity to set the background for it – Pramodya

Chairman of cricket selectors Pramodya Wickramasinghe in a three-page letter to the media, states that there is a conspiracy behind, to destroy Sri Lanka cricket to fulfil the personal ambitions of individuals pretending to save the game and are misleading the public society very skilfully.

In a hard-hitting letter Wickramasinghe states:

“As a member of the National team that inherited the Cricket World Cup in Sri Lanka in 1996, it should be said first of all that I am deeply shocked by the tragic situation that Sri Lankan cricket is currently facing. The International Cricket Council’s ban on Sri Lanka’s membership is a serious threat to the future of cricket in this country. Restoring the membership should be a collective responsibility of all those who love cricket in this country and for that I am appealing to all parties to put aside all disputes and come together.”

“I firmly believe from my experience and observations during the past two and a half years as a member of the Sri Lanka Cricket Selection Committee, that the tragedy that Sri Lankan cricket is currently facing is the result of a multi-faceted conspiracy that has been operating at various levels for a long time. The cricket ban imposed on Sri Lanka is a result of the same process. It is my observation that behind those conspiratorial actions was only the fulfilment of personal ambitions. These parties are spreading false information to the society by pretending to save the game and misleading the society very skilfully. These conspiracies were implemented with various objectives.”

“It is my observation that behind them, there are people connected to the power struggles of Sri Lanka Cricket, brokers engaged in match-fixing, gambling and people who are trying to secure their place in the national team based on mere selfishness. Social media platforms have become a haven for them. The ultimate aim is to break the existing cricket administration.”

“It is also true that these conspirators have spent a lot of money to publish various analyses and opinions on social media in order to make their own conspiracies successful. Outsiders are said to have spent a lot of money on social media campaigns to recruit cricketers into the squad. Even those involved in match-fixing have invested money in massive campaigns in social media to get the players they want into the national cricket team. My above observation about this is true.”

“If anyone objects to this harsh truth, what they should do is to voluntarily hand over their smartphones to the Sports Crime Investigation Unit and allow forensic analysis of their phone calls. The ultimate goal of all these conspiracies is to highlight criticism of cricket in the society. One way it is done is by building a political opinion in society against the administration. As a selection committee member, it is not my subject to talk about it. The second strategy the conspirators are pursuing is criticising the selection committee, coaches and players by highlighting the weaknesses of the cricket team, and attempting to build a social opinion that the current administration is not suitable. In order to build such criticism in society, the mandatory prerequisite is to bring down the Sri Lankan cricket team to a weak position. It now appears that the conspirators have not hesitated to create unrest within the group to achieve their narrow object. The perfect opportunity for that was provided by our unfortunate defeat in the match against India. These are opportunities to break the mental integrity of the National team and break the unity within it.”

“The appointment of a new Minister for Sports was a perfect opportunity to set the background for it. Under the previous Sports Ministers, it was not an environment to fully launch such conspiracies. It is worth recalling here that the previous Sports Ministers gave full support to the functioning of the selection committee. It must be said that due to the full support received, we were able to work without any hindrance and lead the game of cricket to a path of victory.”