Sri Lanka cricket fans will be deprived the opportunity to witness another ICC world event due to government intervention
- Lose rights to host an ICC world event for second time in three years
By Sa’adi Thawfeeq
The International Cricket Council has withdrawn Sri Lanka’s hosting rights for the inaugural Women’s Champions Trophy scheduled for February next year, citing government intervention in the administration of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC). The ICC’s decision removes a major international fixture from the island and follows a pattern of similar actions when national boards are placed under government control, the council said in its statement.
This is the second time in three years Sri Lanka has lost an ICC event after the Under-19 Men’s Cricket World Cup was moved to South Africa in 2023, following the dissolution of the elected SLC administration by the then sports minister. The ICC indicated that the removal of hosting privileges was tied to that government action as well.
Sri Lanka has had frequent government-appointed interim committees running SLC. According to SLC records, the current committee is the 12th since the first interim committee was appointed in 1999. Repeated removals of elected administrations have become a recurring reason for ICC restrictions, and the loss of the Women’s Champions Trophy shows the council is enforcing its governance rules consistently.
The most recent intervention saw the elected executive led by Shammi Silva asked to resign and replaced by a Transformation Committee chaired by former Cabinet Minister Eran Wickramaratne. The stated purpose of the Transformation Committee is to draft a new SLC constitution. SLC officials have told the ministry the draft has been handed to the Minister of Sports and is being translated into the three official languages; it must then complete legal review before presentation to Parliament, a process SLC sources say will take time.
The ICC has made clear it will not wait for a new constitution and fresh elections before enforcing its statutes on member governance. The Transformation Committee will enter its fifth month in September, according to internal SLC timetables seen by Lakbima News.
Losing the right to host an ICC world event carries financial and sporting consequences. Beyond ticket revenues and local spending, hosting raises a board’s international profile and gives players home conditions in major tournaments. The ICC also can withhold the annual grants it pays to member boards if those boards lack recognised elected representation at ICC meetings; Sri Lanka Cricket currently has no sitting delegation at ICC board meetings, a fact that limits the country’s influence at the global level.
If the government wants Sri Lanka to host future ICC events, the immediate priority is to fast-track the SLC constitution and hold duly supervised elections so an elected board can resume recognised governance. That path would restore SLC’s standing with the ICC and reopen opportunities that have now been lost.
