Colombo: Former Captain of the Sri Lanka Cup Cup, Arjuna Ranatunga has slammed the country’s cricket board to approve to host the “Second Indian Team” in the white ball series later this month, saying that it did not lack “insults”.
, India and Sri Lanka will compete in three ODI and as many T20 Internationals as possible starting July 13.
With the main Indian stars such as captain of Virat Kohli and his limited deputy Rohit Sharma in the UK for the upcoming test series, the team here is being led by opening the Shikhar Dhawan Batsman and displays half a dozen players who have not been paid.
“This is the second indian string team and their arrival here is an insult to our cricket.
I blame the current government because it agreed to play with them because of television marketing needs,” Ranatunga, a government minister up to two years ago, told reporters in His residence.
“India sent their best team to England and sent a weaker side to play here.
I blamed our board for it,” added the legendary Batsman, who led Sri Lanka on the 1996 World title.
Sri Lanka Cricket responded by saying that the touring squad is an experienced.
“Of the 20 Indian squad members, 14 players have represented India in all formats or in several forms and not the second string team as claimed,” SLC said.
The visitors had just finished quarantine and would play the home team in the first ODI on July 13.
The head of the Indian National Cricket Academy and former captain Rahul Dravid is head coach for a tour.
“This is the latest norm in the world of cricket, especially the full ICC member countries, because they maintain specialist teams and players for each format of the game,” SLC said.
Ranatunga also talked about running a bad Lanka team at this time in the international arena.
Sri Lanka lost their fifth T20 series in a row when they dropped 3-0 to England last month.
They were also forced to send back three senior players from the ongoing English tour for violating the bio-bubble protocol.
Ranatunga said the lack of discipline was also an administrative error and when he was in a helmet, he did not allow violations.
He demanded a local administration reshuffle and advocated the appointment of the temporary committee to manage Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC).
It was only mid-May that the SLC administration was currently chosen.
Ranatunga is the head of the temporary committee which is politically designated in 2007-08.
Ranatunga said ‘Rent the two Indian teams’ go around Lanka; SLC rejects a statement
