Sports Minister's calculated moves - A welcome sign

We experience many crisis situations in the local sports arena and the Minister of Sports and Public Recreations is making every endavour to sort out those problems.

The running battle between the Sri Lanka national cricketers who have signed to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) is yet to be resolved. Former Sri Lanka captain Duleep Mendis, the SLC CEO who has been entrusted with the task of ironing out this problem, is exploring many possibilities to accommodate both but it will be a tough task.

Now that the SLC has already committed to honour the next summer tour of England, they will have to seek the green light from the ECB if they are to split the tour into two legs - for Tests and one day internationals. How suitable this would be for the ECB is yet to be known.

On the other hand, several cricketers have already committed to honour their IPL contracts, which were signed when the England tour was not on the original schedule. But the SLC says it only gave the green light for the players to take part only in the first year.

While the IPL players were at the receiving end with SLC insisting that they must honour the England tour and the IPL is a private contract, the rebels who took part in the controversial Indian Cricket League (ICL) got a better deal.

The SLC dropped a bombshell when it took a controversial decision to lift the ban on players who took part in the inaugural IPL. But the Sports Minister says he was never consulted before the SLC took this sensitive decision. Former Sri Lanka captain Marvan Atapattu, one of the rebel cricketers who was serving the ban, commended the move.

The ex-national captain said the SLC's decision to lift the domestic ban on five of its ICL cricketers is a "strong message" to other national boards. Atapattu, who represents the Delhi Giants in the IPL, said the SLC decision will lead to a situation where Sri Lankan cricketers can play for their country and choose between the 'blacklisted' ICL and the official IPL.

"It's a very strong message to other boards that have imposed similar bans. It's a message that the game is not ruled by any single body, and nobody should try to rule the game. I hope that other boards, including India, also let all their ICL players play in all forms of cricket. The players in India have taken a brave stand by joining ICL; they are very young and talented. Why not give them a chance now?" Atapattu was quoted as saying.

Besides Atapattu, the other ICL rebel cricketers from Sri Lanka who will be benefited from the decision are Russel Arnold, Upul Chandana, Avishka Gunawardene and Saman Jayantha.

No doubt that the controversial decision could hurt the feelings of the Indian Board which has been firm on the ICL, originated by India's 1983 World Cup winning captain Kapil Dev. Even the ICC, the world governing body, has firmly backed the Indian cricket officials and condemned the actions of rebel cricketers.

It is the Indian and Pakistan Cricket Boards which expressed solidarity with Sri Lanka when Australia and the West Indies refused to honour their 1996 World Cup matches citing security reasons. That ultimately led Sri Lanka to win the richest plum in world cricket, beating Australia by seven wickets in the final played in Lahore on March 17, 1996. Hence, it is important that we do not forget the past so easily.

Minister Lokuge has well understood these facts and asked the SLC not to allow the Lankan rebel cricketers to play for the national team.

The Sports Minister also delayed approving the Sri Lanka squad chosen for the Canada Cup Four Nation Twenty20 tournament and said that the Ministry is considering a complaint from batsman Indika de Saram, who has been overlooked. The Minister also questioned about the non-inclusion of team manager in the original list submitted.

Minister Lokuge has also ordered an investigation on some controversial provincial cricket elections. This follows a complaint made by top North Central Provincial Cricket Association officials, who alleged that some interested parties have called for an AGM without even informing the incumbent President and the Chief Minister of the North Central Provincial Council Berty Premalal Dissanayake. He has ordered to cancel such elections and take appropriate action.

We understand that the Sports Ministry is planning to get rid of interim councils and reinstate democracy in the national Sports Associations. The national Aquatic Sports Union would soon have elections and Minister Lokuge, has already declared that the elections for the country's richest sports governing body - Sri Lanka Cricket, will be held within two months.

It is good to see Minister Lokuge taking a keen interest to put things on the right track and making a genuine effort to refine Sri Lanka sport. True that he has not been a known sportsman and his knowledge of sports in general would be limited. But he is a veteran politician and it is difficult for the sports officials to take him for a ride. He is a silent observer who is capable of making calculated moves.