In a move designed to stem the tide of match-fixing in cricket, Sri Lankan Sports Minister Harin Fernando has announced new regulations to bring the country in line with International Cricket Council (ICC) provisions. For one thing, the regulations will ban individuals with connections to gambling firms from being involved in the sport’s administration.
Sri Lankan cricket has been marked by corruption scandals in recent years, including claims of match-fixing ahead of an international contest against England in 2018.
“From now on, anyone who is involved in betting or has a close relative involved in betting will not be able to hold office,” Fernando told reporters in Colombo last month.
According to Agence France Presse, the changes apparently are directed at Thilanga Sumathipala, former president and current executive committee member of Sri Lanka Cricket, whose family owns a gaming enterprise.
Fernando said the ICC considers cricket in Sri Lanka to be corrupt “from top to bottom.” Last November former Sri Lankan fast bowler Dilhara Lokuhettige became the third Sri Lankan player charged with violating the ICC’s anti-corruption code, along with former captain and ex-chief selector Sanath Jayasuriya and former paceman Nuwan Zoysa.
Lokuhetigge was suspended for corruption linked to a limited-over league in 2017. Jayasuriya was found guilty of failing to cooperate with a match-fixing probe and was banned for two years, while Zoysa was suspended over the match-fixing accusations.
