Minister bowled for a duck
The May 5 deadline for Sri Lanka’s cricketers to comply with the demand by new Sports Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage and cut short their stay with the money-spinning Indian Premier League and return to the country ahead of the important tour of England has passed. The players, apart from one or two who have not had a happy IPL and returned, are continuing their business across the Palk Straits.
So the new minister has been bowled for a duck in his first outing at the crease. But unlike players who are dropped when they fail, the minister will continue, for party politics in Sri Lanka is a different ball game. On the other hand we cannot expect ministers in Sri Lanka to resign if they are unable to deliver because we have plunged into a disgraceful, degrading and deceitful era where the desire is for personal gain or glory instead of sincere service to the people and the country. They just bat on for there are plenty of replacements waiting to take their place if they dare uphold their principles and Minister Aluthgamage is the third sports minister in a few months, which means there are plenty of sports ministers to choose from than cricketers waiting for their break.
What sport the new minister has played or at least his background on such a subject is largely unknown to the country. Of course some may argue that ministers don’t need to come from sporting stock to get on with their political batting or bowling. But while we admire the stand taken by the minister on the IPL, the problem is that the new sports minister is giving the impression he is just like a 12th man who has come for a short stay to make the most by hitting political sixes and fielding behind the political boundary.
First and foremost the minister should have realized, and he is no unqualified umpire, that all was not well at Sri Lanka Cricket which had been brought under government sponsored Interim Committees and have not been accountable for their actions. In short by not having to emphasize on accountability Sri Lanka Cricket had lost hold of its bat and thereby caused disarray, which the cricketers exploited to the maximum.
The Minister should have realised he was not dealing with a bunch of village “gudu” players but a band of tough nut professionals to whom money is high priority with each of them having their commercial agents to take care of matters. By not getting to the bottom of it, the minister has only displayed his ignorance and from now on he will need plenty of advice if he is to effectively tackle player-contract issues.
But this is not to say that the players were right. We do not subscribe to players getting their priorities mixed up and the saddest part is that not one player in his wisdom has the guts to stand out as a model sportsman and tell his IPL bosses that his country is more important than a private battle that has made him a mercenary.
Just who will be held accountable for any debacle on the tour of England which starts this week will be on top of the scoreboard. Will it be the minister, the hierarchy of Sri Lanka Cricket, the players or their so-called managers? In the aftermath of all this, the England tour will be seen as a make or break event for the Sri Lankan team under a new captain. We can only keep our fingers crossed and hope that new captain Tillekaratne Dilshan will make a happy debut at the top.
He and his team will not only carry the hopes and aspirations of adoring fans but also the key to the survival of a rotting set of administrators.
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