Tale of Dissanayakes and cricket

Thursday, 30 April 2015 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

By Leonard Ratnayake It was not such a long time ago, when in 1979, Sri Lanka became the champions of the inaugural ICC Trophy. Eventually, in 1982, the Late Gamini Dissanayake was instrumental in obtaining the ICC Test status for Sri Lanka. In 1996, in his bright years in politics, S.B. Dissanayake motivated the country’s cricketers to win the coveted world crown. Come 2015, unfortunately, we are in the reversing gears. Navin Dissanayake, the very own son of Gamini, has put country’s cricket on knees at the mercy of its international governing body. Incidentally, all three Dissanayakes here above are important politicians in the country. They are cabinet ministers of the Sri Lankan parliament. All of them, more or less, are from Nuwara-eliya and surely the hill country. But Sri Lanka cricket belongs to all the islanders and whatever happens, the loss is suffered by its ardent followers, who had made cricket an entity rich of fame and money. Sri Lanka’s one of the most honourable of ministers Gamini Dissanayake, who is also the most revered cricket administrators so far was able to exploit the talents of the emerging cricketers in the early 80s to claim a seat for Sri Lanka at the International Cricket Council and a year pass by he got Sri Lanka equal rights to any other cricketing nation in the world, although we were considered minnows of world cricket for a long time. In 1994, in his second but short tenure as President of Sri Lanka Cricket, he was able to transform the world’s cricketing minnows to giant killers providing much needed groundwork and inspiration to Arjuna Ranatunga led cricketers to build a solid team for its future. His unfortunate demise deprived him witnessing a cricket world cup victory for Sri Lanka in 1996. But it was another Dissanayake, namely Sumanaweera Banda, who was the Minister of Sports since 1994 who aided a motivation drive with his do-or-die push on Ranatunga’s team. During his period, Sri Lanka not only won the world cup, but maintained and showed real class of a champion’s outfit. After walking up to the middle, young Navin Dissanayake got off to a flying start as how it calls in cricket, when he first took office as the Sports Minister to summon and discuss the issues of the national cricket administration. Then he promised high to its membership of a most democratic election in cricket history so far. That’s where I doubted his words against deeds as he was ignoring the facts that cricket is in the top of the political interest list of Kumaratunga reigns and that Sumathipala is still not a forgotten figure among cricket clubs. As the saying goes that what a father toils to build in a life-time, a son could destroy in an instant; would it be the case in point for cricket in Sri Lanka? Whatever being the issue, whoever that is behind the scene, it is now the burden of Navin Dissanayake as the Sports Minister to defend the country’s cricket falling to condemnation. In the past 13 years, there have been almost nine interim committees appointed by the Government over charges of irregularities; malpractice and corruption in the cricket administration but no measures have been taken to avoid such repeating. To any ignorant person, this shows that the Government is taking the allegations as an excuse to take control of the cash flow of Sri Lanka cricket, since in the said years no one was found guilty or punished and they are the same bees flying over the nectar. Minister Dissanayake surely wouldn’t want to fail, but all odds are against him that he should justify his interference by proving all charges against the past administration and that Sri Lankan cricket clubs are not independent enough to elect a controlling body to cricket in Sri Lanka as per the demands of the International Cricket Council and that the country retains its membership with ICC. Hence, it would be interesting to see who would be chosen to crucify in order to save Sri Lanka cricket’s international identity. (www.srilankasports.com)