Thilanga Sumathipala, has pulled out of the race for the presidency, leaving his main rival Upali Dharmadasa as the most likely to win the election on January 3

Sa'adi Thawfeeq and Tariq Engineer19-Dec-2011Former Sri Lanka Cricket president, Thilanga Sumathipala, has pulled out of the race for the presidency, leaving his main rival Upali Dharmadasa as the most likely to win the election on January 3.

Dharmadasa’s 12-point plan to revive SLC

1. Invoke the support of stakeholders – districts,clubs and affiliates to create a volunteer force which could provide SLC with great financial stability.
2. Control of expenditure and cost reduction strategy.
3. Develop school cricket which is the cradle of Sri Lanka cricket, throughout the country.
4. Prepare a long term development plan for districts, school cricket in outstations and suburbs of Colombo to bring youngsters to the national cricket arena with emphasis in the north and east.
5. Strengthen the domestic cricket structure to support progress of cricketers from school district level to the national level.
6. Implement cutting-edge strategies to generate revenue through sponsorships and other innovative methods.
7. Maximize revenue from sale of television and other rights of SLC through a transparent process.
8. Develop ‘Sri Lanka Cricket’ into a marketable brand that can create new revenue schemes.
9. Use 2012 T20 World Cup as a launching pad for sports tourism in our country.
10. Adopt the best practices in corporate governance so as to avoid any conflict of interest and allegations of corruption that may damage the brand of Sri Lanka cricket and the nation.
11. Develop a clear strategy for team selection and succession planning to ensure continuity as well as sustained performance of Sri Lanka cricket.
12. Upgrade the standard of umpires, coaches and match referees by harnessing the local talent available and investing in best of class Human Resources Development.

“I have decided not to contest for personal reasons,” Sumathipala told ESPNcricinfo after accompanying the rest of his team to hand over their nominations to the Ministry of Sports earlier today. The said ministry will conduct the elections.Since the last interim committee, headed by Dharmadasa, was dissolved by the ministry on November 15, there has been a lot of lobbying going on for key positions from either side. The consensus of opinion suggests that political pressure was put on Sumathipala, who is a sitting member of parliament, to withdraw, thus paving the way for Dharmadasa, who also has strong links with the government.However Sumathipala denied that was the case. “I have taken the decision not to contest because I need time to devote to cricket if I am to become president,” he said. “With my involvement as a government MP, I may not find that amount of time.”Sumathipala had served as president of SLC in 1997-1998, 2000-2001 and 2003-2004. His board was forced to stand down in the wake of an investigation into alleged financial irregularities in 2001. In 2004, he had to pull out of the elections as he was in jail at the time for passport fraud.Sumith Perera, the president of of Baduraliya Cricket Club, is the only other candidate for president, but is not seen as a serious contender.Running alongside Dharmadasa will be K Mathivanan, a former SLC secretary, who is running for one of the vice-president’s posts. However, the Dharmadasa camp has not nominated anyone for the posts of secretary and treasurer.Nishantha Ranatunga, who was secretary of the interim committee headed by DS de Silva, is contesting as an independent candidate for the post of secretary. He faces opposition from Michael de Zoysa, a former assistant secretary who has been nominated from the Sumathipala camp.The post of treasurer is uncontested with Nuski Mohamed, a former secretary and treasurer being the only nominee for the post.Sri Lanka Cricket is holding elections for the first time since 2004. Over the last seven years, the sport has been run by a succession of government appointed interim committees. The biggest challenge the new board will face is rebuilding SLC’s finances, which are reportedly in debt to the tune of $32.5 million. SLC was bankrupted revamping the Premadasa Stadium in Colombo and building two new grounds in Pallekele and Hambantota for the 2011 World Cup, for which the DS de Silva interim administration has been blamed. These stadiums are now being maintained by the government, with the army, navy and air force each looking after one stadium.Since the World Cup ended in April, Sri Lanka Cricket has been unable to pay the salaries of its 100-odd contracted cricketers and 200-odd employees. It has sought the help of the treasury department of the government is awaiting payments due from the ICC to help pay the players.In the lead up to the nominations, Dharmadasa had revealed a 12-point plan for revitalising SLC. Among his proposal are the maximisation of revenue from television rights, something SLC has not always done in the past, and to use the 2012 World Twenty20 as a starting point to develop sports tourism in the country.List of Nominations
President (1 post) : Upali Dharmadasa, Sumith R Perera
Vice Presidents (2 posts) : Jayantha Paranathala, Mohan de Silva, Michael de Zoysa, Asanga Seneviratne, K Mathivanan
Secretary (1 post) : Nishantha Ranatunga, Ravin Wickramaratne, Michael de Zoysa
Treasurer (1 post) : Nuski Mohamed
Assistant Secretary (1 post): Irwin Jayawardene, Gerard Hirantha Perera
Assistant Secretary (1 post): Ajitha Pasqual, Prasanna Fernando, Gihan Weerasinghe, Michael de Zoysa, Nihal Lewke.

Not many gave Sri Lanka a chance at the start of the tour but Sri Lanka have responded with a new-found sense of self belief

Firdose Moonda at Kingsmead28-Dec-2011For three consecutive innings, Kumar Sangakkara was dismissed by good, wicket-taking deliveries. Unlike some of his team-mates or even his opposition, Sangakkara did not spend enough time at the crease to play a poor shot. And it looked like he would not get that chance today either.Another superb delivery, a tempting one outside the off stump, induced a poke and Sangakkara should have been out for three. Instead he went on to make 108, stamp his authority on the situation, the match and one of three countries in which he had not recorded a century until today. It was only a matter of time, really, given Sangakkara’s status as a class act, on the field, off the field and around the world.”If the luck works for you on a particular day, you have to try and capitalise,” said Sangakkara. “You can’t go into a negative frame of mind at any time, especially against good attacks. I am watching the ball a lot better than I was in the first few innings. Once I got to the 60s and the 70s, it was a case of waiting for the bad balls.”Hittable deliveries came often, especially after lunch, when South Africa dished up short ball after short ball, which went from threatening to tame fairly rapidly. Their game plan was indecipherable as they failed to find a balance between drying up runs and taking wickets, which allowed Sri Lanka to cash in on an indecisive opposition. “Once you get to a certain total in front of the opposition, they have to go into a defensive mode,” Sangakkara said, admitting it freed him up to score runs.Besides his individual effort, Sangakkara shared two key partnerships, first withThilan Samaraweera, with whom he put on 94, and then Dinesh Chandimal, in a stand of 104. He credited with both with being essential to Sri Lanka’s new found sense of self-belief.”Thilan was out of the side and had come back in for a very tough tour. To do what he did in that first innings for us was incredible. It was a make or break series for the guy,” he said. “Chandimal has shown that he is strong, both physically and mentally. He showed he was not overawed by the situation or the South African attack.”Now that Sri Lanka have overcome the mental barrier of the situation and the team they are playing against, they have a loftier target in mind. “We’d like to get into a dominant position and dictate terms,” said Sangakkara. “Our target is to get as many as we can and make the South Africa work really hard to save the game.”Even though South Africa will have to achieve a world-record chase to win the match, Sangakkara said “nothing is beyond the realms of possibility” and the team is gearing up for a tough fight. On a pitch which still has “a bit of inconsistent bounce” Sri Lanka’s bowling attack will have to make good use of the conditions and work well with their resources.Sangakkara expects Rangana Herath to be a key factor in the search for a first Test victory in South Africa. “He is going to be very important for us. If he can get some turn and bowl with the same control, he will be a handful to play on this track,” said Sangakkara. “Our pace attack has got to do a lot to take early wickets and get us breakthroughs with the new ball.”Before Sri Lanka arrived on this tour, they were labelled no-hopers especially in terms of their bowling. Kepler Wessels said even South Africa A would be able to beat them. It is a comment that stung and that, Sangakkara said, also spurred them on. “Comments can inspire sides; pressure situations make sides rise to the occasion. We proved that we have the ability to counter-attack,” he said.Now they want to prove that to South Africa too. “The best way we can make it count is to get them out,” he said. “We have to control the aggression, have positive mindsets and at no point lose control of our emotions.”

The fast bowler Pat Cummins is aiming to be part of Australia’s tour of the West Indies but has all but been ruled out of the Commonwealth Bank Series due to his heel injury

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Jan-2012The fast bowler Pat Cummins is aiming to be part of Australia’s tour of the West Indies but has all but been ruled out of the Commonwealth Bank Series due to his heel injury. Cummins, 18, starred in Australia’s Test victory in Johannesburg in November but has not played since then, and he is expecting to resume bowling in the next two weeks.However, it could be as much as a month until he makes his comeback to competitive cricket, which is likely to come through Sydney’s grade competition rather than for New South Wales. The limited-overs portion of the West Indies tour begins on March 16, and Cummins hopes he will be available for the five ODIs.”The main thing everyone has said is don’t rush and try and race back for something and then end up doing it again and you’re out for another three months,” Cummins told the . “It’s a bit out of everyone’s hands, it’s just how it recovers. Just playing it by ear and when it’s ready it’s ready. I’d love to be on that West Indies tour.”I’ve done about four or five runs now and it’s pulled up brilliantly the next day. It’s pain-free every run and the next day it’s not swollen so it’s good signs at the moment. [It] probably takes another three or four weeks to build up to game practice. After that four weeks, hopefully 10 overs should be right for one-day cricket.”His success in the Wanderers Test made Cummins an appealing prospect for the home summer, but Australia’s strong pace-bowling resources meant they managed without him and won five of their six home Tests. Peter Siddle, Ben Hilfenhaus, Ryan Harris, James Pattinson and Mitchell Starc carried the fast-bowling load.

Chittagong Kings have threatened to pull out of the next edition of the Bangladesh Premier League because they were replaced in the semi-finals of this year’s tournament

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Feb-2012Chittagong Kings have threatened to pull out of the next edition of the Bangladesh Premier League because they were replaced in the semi-finals of this year’s tournament hours after being officially deemed to have qualified. The matter descended into farce, with the BPL first making a clear statement on Monday saying Chittagong were one of the semi-finalists and then, at 2:45am on Tuesday morning, issuing a release saying that in fact Barisal Burners were the fourth semi-finalists. The situation became murkier on Tuesday as the Chittagong franchise alleged that the BPL had also not responded to their reports of being approached to fix matches.Nasir Ahmed, the Chittagong manager, said the manner in which Chittagong had been ousted from the knockout phase was an “injustice”. “We rushed to the stadium [at night] and on arrival we were given a letter which said Barisal are through to the semi-final and we are out,” he said. “We were stunned as this could not happen according to the tournament’s bylaws. This is an injustice and we want a remedy.”On Sunday evening, after Barisal had chased down Chittagong’s score in 15 overs, it was announced by the broadcasters that Barisal were through to the semi-finals on the basis of net run-rate. This, according to Mike Procter, BPL match-referee and technical committee member, was a false announcement. “It didn’t come from us, nothing official came from us,” Procter said. “If the television [broadcasters] speculate and if you guys [the media] speculate, we do not take the responsibility.At that point, Chittagong, Barisal, Khulna Royal Bengals and Dhaka Gladiators were equal on 10 points. On Monday, Dhaka lost narrowly to Rajshahi and Khulna beat Sylhet Royals. By virtue of 12 points from 10 games, Khulna went to second place, leaving Dhaka, Barisal and Chittagong tied on points at the end of the league phase.In the head-to-head results between the three teams level on 10 points, Dhaka had beaten Barisal twice and Chittagong once and therefore qualified for the semi-finals in third place. That now left Chittagong and Barisal in contention for the fourth spot. Chittagong had two wins, against Barisal and Dhaka, while Barisal had only one, against Chittagong. Barisal’s net run-rate, however, was better than that of Chittagong.On Monday evening, BPL governing council chairman Gazi Ashraf Hossain officially announced the semi-final line-up. “According to the rules Rajshahi, Khulna, Dhaka and Chittagong are through,” he said. He produced a photocopied page from the by-laws where clause 21.8.2 was pointed out. It said: “when three or more teams finish with equal wins in the league, then the team(s) which was (were) the winner of the most number of matches played between those equal teams in the league will be placed in the higher position(s). If after applying this criterion, there are many items which are still equal, then such equal teams shall be ranked according to their net run-rate in the league.”It was announced that Chittagong were in the semi-finals on the basis of a better head-to-head record in the three-way tie on 10 points, which included Dhaka.At 2.45 am on Tuesday morning, however, the BPL issued a release which said that Barisal was the fourth semi-finalist. The second and third points in the release said:”(2) Three teams – Dhaka Gladiators, Barisal Burners and Chittagong Kings are on equal (10) points. Dhaka Gladiators have most wins from meetings with Barisal Burners and Chittagong Kings and therefore qualify as the 3rd semi-finalist.”(3) With Barisal Burners and Chittagong Kings both having one win against each other the 4th qualifier had to be decided on the basis of superior net run-rate. Barisal edged ahead of Chittagong on net run-rate to become the 4th semi-finalist.”Procter explained that the confusion arose because there were two clauses: one concerning a situation in which three teams were equal on points (21.8.2) and one referring to a similar situation with two teams (21.8.1). The former was used to decide Dhaka’s qualification, which left Chittagong and Barisal level, meaning clause 21.8.1 would come into effect and Chittagong’s win against Dhaka would not be counted.”Because they ended up with the most points Dhaka were taken out of the equation,” Procter said. “Two teams were left. So you could not have a head-to-head between three teams, but only two.”Chittagong, though, were left fuming and their chief executive has now also said they had been approached to fix matches. These claims come a day after the arrest of a Pakistani citizen, who was attending BPL matches, on suspicions of involvement in fixing.”We have been approached by unknown callers at three times to fix matches,” the Chittagong chief executive Sameer Quader Chowdhury said. “We informed the BPL governing council in writing but did not get any response. Even the man arrested on suspicion the other day was first identified by us.”He also said that Chittagong were considering pulling out of the tournament, though the franchise had been bought for three years. “We have invested a lot in this tournament [but] if this trend continues, we will not participate from the next edition.”Another bone of contention for the Chittagong Kings was that the official scoring website (digicricket.marssil.com) showed Chittagong above Barisal in the head-to-head count till 11am in the morning but later had N/A (not applicable) filled for each team in the head-to-head column.Edited by Dustin Silgardo

Gloucestershire are to receive a bridging loan of £400,000 from Bristol City Council while they await the outcome of their appeal over the planning application for the redevelopment of their Nevil Road ground

George Dobell16-Mar-2012Gloucestershire are to receive a bridging loan of £400,000 from Bristol City Council while they await the outcome of their appeal over the planning application for the redevelopment of their Nevil Road ground.The short-term loan will help Gloucestershire with their running costs and pay for the professional services incurred as they adapt their plans. The loan, which has been granted at a preferential rate of interest, will have to be repaid whether the club are successful with their appeal or not.The club’s planning application for a £10 million ground redevelopment was rejected by the council in January. The scheme, which involved the construction of 147 flats in a seven-storey block, was rejected partially as some local residents felt the building was too high. Parking and travel considerations were also an issue. The adapted scheme contains the same number of flats – the club insist that reducing the number would compromise the viability of the whole project – but split over six storeys and a larger surface area. The club will also continue to lobby for the reopening of the local railway station at Ashley Down that was closed as in the 1960s. The appeal is due to be considered at the end of May.The retention of international cricket is a key motivation behind the redevelopment. The club’s management feel such a policy provides the best hope of achieving financial stability and the resources to compete with other counties, though critics suggest that Gloucestershire are the poor relations in the viciously competitive battle for international fixtures and that another large venue might well become a white elephant. It is a point of view lent weight by the recent experiences of Hampshire and Glamorgan.Should the appeal be rejected, Gloucestershire insist they will press ahead with plans to relocate; possibly outside Bristol. Tuffley Avenue in Gloucester is one potential location though a site at Filton Airfield, three miles north of Nevil Road, will also be explored. Bristol City Council is naturally enough keen to retain a business that it estimates brings in around £1m to the local community each time an international game is played at the ground. Gloucester City Council have already been in touch with the club for early talks over a potential move.”As part of our duties as a local authority, we are keen to support organisations that are valuable to the city and important to its residents,” Simon Cook, the deputy leader of Bristol City Council, said. “We understand how important sport is for the successful infrastructure of the region and have always been supportive of the cricket club in their ambition to retain international cricket at the Nevil Road ground.”Offering a loan is a pragmatic way we can help over the next few months while they work on the development plans for the ground. The repayment is guaranteed whether their plans proceed or not, so does not in any way prejudice the council’s independent planning decision-making process.”Tom Richardson, chief executive of Gloucestershire, said: “As a long-standing member of the Bristol community and a popular members’ club, it is a priority for us to ensure our future at Nevil Road. This is specifically so we can deliver a fit-for-purpose facility that will host international matches and also invest in a high quality and standard of county cricket – something we believe is of great benefit to the region in general.”The loan will fuel concerns over Gloucestershire’s ongoing viability, however. The club have already lost the services of former England bowler Jon Lewis, who signed for Surrey after Gloucestershire were unable to offer him assurances over his future, while they are in legal dispute with Chris Taylor after they withdrew a contract offer following the failed planning application. The addition of a £400,000 loan raises the stakes on their redevelopment gamble.Edited by Alan Gardner

Paul Collingwood has admitted he wondered if he had the will to continue playing after England dropped him from their one-day teams last summer

Jon Culley04-Apr-2012Paul Collingwood has admitted he wondered if he had the will to continue playing after England effectively ended his international career when they dropped him from their one-day teams last summer, in the process stripping him of the Twenty20 captaincy.”It came right out of the blue,” Collingwood said. “There had been no inkling, so when Geoff Miller came to see me to tell me what had been decided I felt it was very, very harsh. It took me a while to get my head around it. You look at all the options and there was a point when I had to ask myself if I wanted to carry on.”Collingwood, under whose leadership England won their first international one-day trophy in the 2010 ICC World Twenty20, retired from Test cricket in January last year after helping England win the Ashes in Australia.But after subsequently playing in the 50-over World Cup he believed he could continue his international career in one-day competitions and had not given much thought to what he might do if he was not given the chance.”When you are in the England bubble your concern is only with playing and giving your best and you don’t really focus much on the future. Suddenly I was out of that bubble and in the big wide world again.”But I thought it was important to give myself time and not make a rash decision. Cricket is my skill, the career I had been working towards since I was 14 or 15 years old and going down a different route is not something you can do immediately.”Instead, Collingwood – who will be 36 next month – gave himself until the end of the season to determine how he felt, and found his appetite for the game at county level remained keen enough to accept the offer of a new three-year contract with Durham.He has not given up hope yet of an England swansong, although he accepts that it would take “some miraculous performances” to force his way back into contention.”I’m not bitter about what happened,” he said. “I am a realistic man and accept that times move on and there comes a crossroads in everybody’s career where the hierarchy are going to make decisions about you.”I don’t bear any grudge towards the management or the selectors. If you put yourself in their position you understand that they have to make calls that they consider to be in the best interests of the England team in the long term. But I think I need to keep it as a goal, to get back in the England side. It is a big motivational factor. There are things about being in the England side that I really, really miss and it would be silly to say I’ve retired.”I realise I’m going to have to put in some miraculous performances but I still feel young, I still feel fit and I still feel I can contribute. You never know what might happen.”With that goal in mind, it has not helped that the planned third leg of his winter Twenty20 itinerary has effectively been cancelled after IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals, to whom he was contracted for a second year, told him he had little chance of seeing any action.”Rajasthan called me up two or three weeks ago and said they had made four new signings, which gave them about nine or ten overseas players,” he said. “They said they would fly me out immediately if they had a couple of injuries but said rather than drag me round India for seven weeks I should stay at home and play some cricket.”They did not want to release me from the contract but I think it highly unlikely I will be going out, the way they were talking. I told them I would like to fight for my place but they were honest enough to say I was well down the pecking order. It is disappointing. If you are out there you can at least be in the nets and try to make an impact.”Collingwood had a more successful time in Australia, where he helped Perth Scorchers reach the final of the inaugural Big Bash League, and captained the newly-formed South African franchise Impi.”Perth was brilliant. Having the family out there was great and playing competitive cricket in front of big crowds was fantastic. Every game attracted about 20,000 spectators – and getting to the final means we will be in the Champions League.”South Africa was different. There weren’t the crowds and the team I captained consisted mainly of fringe players from other franchises and the challenge was to make them competitive. But I loved both competitions and hopefully there will be more opportunities next winter.”The change in his IPL plans makes Collingwood available for Durham for their opening County Championship match against Nottinghamshire next week, when he will reacquaint himself with playing cricket in England in April – his warm anticipation of which may have been cooling a little as snow fell at Chester-le-Street.”It is the first April I’ve had in England for seven or eight years but it is exciting to be focusing solely on Durham. There were a couple of other offers and Derbyshire was one of the places mentioned but coming from the north-east, where my family is, and being a Shotley Bridge lad, I want to play for Durham.”Durham are the people that gave me the opportunity to play international cricket. You want to give something back and hopefully I can pass on to the younger players some of the knowledge I have gained from playing around the world. But it isn’t just about that because obviously I want to continue playing, win games for Durham and win some silverware.”

Limping Michael Carberry helped Hampshire establish a sound first-innings position against Leicestershire and in the process justified his call to the England Lions squad

27-Apr-2012
ScorecardMichael Carberry has earned a recall to the England Lions squad•Getty Images

Limping Michael Carberry helped Hampshire establish a sound first-innings position against Leicestershire and in the process justified his call to the England Lions squad to face the West Indies next month. On a second day hindered by rain, Hampshire closed at 181 for 4 with Carberry needing the aid of a runner in making an unbeaten 73.This was in response to Leicestershire’s first-innings total of 234 all out, made in 99.2 overs after a late rally led by wicketkeeper Ned Eckersley’s diligent 34.Carberry, whose solitary England cap came two years ago, is only now fully recovered from blood clots on the lung, a condition which stopped him playing until July and at one stage threatened his life. But while the lung problem may be part of his past, Carberry still struggled while batting on another cloud-covered day because of a recurrence of a groin injury.It did not stop him hitting pace bowler Alex Wyatt for six and striking 13 fours in his 138-ball innings as Leicestershire failed to build on a promising start which saw Wyatt dismiss openers Sean Terry and Liam Dawson cheaply.Terry, son of the former Hampshire and England batsman Paul, marked his championship debut with a duck, caught in the slips in Wyatt’s first over. When Dawson was caught behind for 19, Hampshire were 25 for 2 but then Carberry was joined by stand-in captain Simon Katich in a stand of 124 for the third wicket.Katich edged Nadeem Malik to the wicketkeeper after making 54 and James Vince followed five runs later at 154, caught at slip by Ramnaresh Sarwan off Wyatt. But Carberry remained firm and with Sean Ervine saw Hampshire through to the close, at which point they were 53 behind with six wickets in hand. The persevering Wyatt ended the day with 3 for 63.Earlier Leicestershire resumed at 159 for 6 and added a further 75 around Eckersley’s important contribution from number eight, after the loss of Joshua Cobb after four overs of the day’s play. Left-arm spinner Dawson, who had taken three wickets overnight, added two more in Cobb and Wayne White to finish with career-best Championship figures of five for 29.David Balcombe, who has had an outstanding season so far, took only one wicket in the innings, that of Eckersley to a slip catch by Vince, and David Griffiths finished off Leicestershire when he had last man Wyatt held by wicketkeeper Michael Bates.