NEW DELHI: Faced with intense pressure from the Board of Control for Cricket in India, the Sri Lankan cricket board (SLC) allowed its players to play in the Indian Premier League till May 18.
Lankan sports minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage announced this after meeting key SLC members and the selectors in Colombo on Thursday.
The minister had earlier given Lankan cricketers a May 5 deadline.
"We had a chat with SLC officials and the selection committee and considered the BCCI's request. It was decided to allow the Lankan cricketers to play their IPL matches till May 18. They will have to report to their national team on May 19 in England to play the second practice match," Aluthgamage told TOI.
TOI had reported on Thursday that BCCI was thinking of blocking the IPL fees of the Lankan cricketers and refusing to pay SLC its share of 10% of the players' earnings. Sources said top Lankan cricketers also expressed their wish to stay on and play their IPL matches before joining their national team for the England series.
But the Lankan sports minister dismissed such threats and even claimed that his country didn't bow to Indian pressure. "It wasn't a government issue. Based on the request of the BCCI, we decided to allow our cricketers to fulfill their IPL commitments. Don't forget, we share a good rapport with both BCCI and the Indian government," he said.
Aluthgamage, however, admitted that monetary assistance from the Indian board to its Lankan counterpart was one of the reasons behind avoiding a showdown. "From time to time, the BCCI has been helping SLC with finances and we have high regard for the BCCI," he said.
Earlier during the day, BCCI vice-president Rajiv Shukla said: "The Lankan players are here to stay till May 21 as they have promised and the franchises are also under the same impression. But they want to go early and it is not appropriate,"
The Lankan series in England starts on May 14 with a practice match against Middlesex, followed by another warm-up game against England Lions on May 19. "We will manage the first match with some of the newcomers in the Lankan team, but the players will have to be in England on May 19 for the second match," Aluthgamage said.
When asked if the decision to give a May 5 deadline was linked to the shabby treatment reportedly dished out to Lankan ministers during the World Cup final between India and Sri Lanka in Mumbai on April 2, Aluthgamage said: "These are two separate issues. It is true that 10 to 15 ministers who had gone to Mumbai for the World Cup final matches were given a Rs 5,000 ticket and those ministers underwent security checks at every point, which was embarrassing. But that is a protocol issue. This is cricket and don't mix the game with protocol issues."
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Lankan sports minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage announced this after meeting key SLC members and the selectors in Colombo on Thursday.
The minister had earlier given Lankan cricketers a May 5 deadline.
"We had a chat with SLC officials and the selection committee and considered the BCCI's request. It was decided to allow the Lankan cricketers to play their IPL matches till May 18. They will have to report to their national team on May 19 in England to play the second practice match," Aluthgamage told TOI.
TOI had reported on Thursday that BCCI was thinking of blocking the IPL fees of the Lankan cricketers and refusing to pay SLC its share of 10% of the players' earnings. Sources said top Lankan cricketers also expressed their wish to stay on and play their IPL matches before joining their national team for the England series.
But the Lankan sports minister dismissed such threats and even claimed that his country didn't bow to Indian pressure. "It wasn't a government issue. Based on the request of the BCCI, we decided to allow our cricketers to fulfill their IPL commitments. Don't forget, we share a good rapport with both BCCI and the Indian government," he said.
Aluthgamage, however, admitted that monetary assistance from the Indian board to its Lankan counterpart was one of the reasons behind avoiding a showdown. "From time to time, the BCCI has been helping SLC with finances and we have high regard for the BCCI," he said.
Earlier during the day, BCCI vice-president Rajiv Shukla said: "The Lankan players are here to stay till May 21 as they have promised and the franchises are also under the same impression. But they want to go early and it is not appropriate,"
The Lankan series in England starts on May 14 with a practice match against Middlesex, followed by another warm-up game against England Lions on May 19. "We will manage the first match with some of the newcomers in the Lankan team, but the players will have to be in England on May 19 for the second match," Aluthgamage said.
When asked if the decision to give a May 5 deadline was linked to the shabby treatment reportedly dished out to Lankan ministers during the World Cup final between India and Sri Lanka in Mumbai on April 2, Aluthgamage said: "These are two separate issues. It is true that 10 to 15 ministers who had gone to Mumbai for the World Cup final matches were given a Rs 5,000 ticket and those ministers underwent security checks at every point, which was embarrassing. But that is a protocol issue. This is cricket and don't mix the game with protocol issues."
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