The Sri Lankan Cricket Board (SLC) has hit back at the claims made by the former Sri Lankan captain Arjuna Ranatunga who had blamed the board for accepting to host a second-string Indian squad. The 20-member team led by Shikhar Dhawan will play the Lankan team in a 3 match ODI series and as many as T20Is starting 13th July in Colombo. Meanwhile, fans can make use of online betting in India to enjoy betting on the ongoing cricket and football matches.
The World Cup-winning captain of the 1996 SL team talking to the reporters said that the current board accepted to play India’s weaker team for marketing needs. It has to be noted that India’s multi-format players like Jasprit Bumrah, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Shami, Pant, etc are currently in England to prepare for their upcoming 5-match Test series.
“This is a second-string Indian team and their coming here is an insult to our cricket. I blame the current administration for agreeing to play with them due to television marketing needs. India sent their best team to England and sent a weaker side to play here. I blame our board for that,” Ranatunga, a few days back in his residence.
SLC responded almost immediately by stating in a media release that 14 members of India’s touring squad have represented the highest level in at least one form of cricket. They added that it is by no means a second-string team.
“Sri Lanka Cricket wishes to announce that despite claims by various parties as reported in the Media, the National White-Ball team of India currently touring Sri Lanka is a strong squad. Out of the 20-member India squad, 14 players have represented India across all formats or in some form. (Test, ODI, or T20I), and not a ‘second string team,’ as claimed,” SLC said in a statement.
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In their statement, SLC further clarified that it was only because of the Covid-19 protocols and to follow ICC’s FTP, such arrangements have been made.
“This is the latest norm in the cricketing world, especially the full ICC Member countries, as they maintain specialist squads and players for each format of the game. The aim of such arrangements is to be competitive in each format of the game by maintaining specialist players and squad. Apart from it, maintaining separate squads enable cricketing boards to fulfill their international commitments unhindered, such as the ICC Future Tours Program,” the statement read.
India’s Test team will play their 1st match on the 4th August at Trent Bridge against England. This makes it a lot tougher for the players to reach the UK from Colombo if they had been included due to quarantine issues.
So the BCCI decided to name a team that has a blend of both youth and experience. Players like Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Hardik Pandya, Manish Pandey will bring a wealth of experience. Also, it features many talented players like Prithvi Shaw, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan who have played for India in the past.
Sri Lanka on the other hand is coming off a disastrous England where they lost 5 of the 6 games(3-0 in T20Is and 2-0 ODIs). Sunday’s 3rd ODI was deemed a no-result due to rain. For more updates on Sri Lanka cricket and the upcoming India tour of Sri Lanka, stay tuned to ReadScoops.com…
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