TROUBLED WATERS

Sri Lanka's darkest hour

by Rex Clementine • Last updated on

Chandimal was handed a one-Test suspension after being found guilty of colluding to alter the condition of the ball during the Test against the Windies © AFP

It's not the first time the Sri Lankans have been accused of ball tampering. It's also not the first time they have been accused of bringing the game into disrepute either. At times they have perhaps been too smart - stretching the rules - like when they switched the captain during the World T20 at home in 2012 to prevent Mahela Jayawardene from getting banned. Yet, none of that was too bad. What transpired on the third day of the second Test at St. Lucia against West Indies remains the darkest moment of Sri Lankan cricket.

Minutes after Match Referee Javagal Srinath banned captain Dinesh Chandimal from the last Test in Barbados for ball tampering, ICC Chief Executive David Richardson charged the captain, coach and manager with a more serious level 3 offence which relates to conduct that is contrary to the spirit of the game.

The trio's offence was holding up play for two hours, asking match officials for proof that their captain had tampered with the ball. The Sri Lankans should have known better. Both coach Chandika Hathurusingha and manager Asanka Gurusinha are former Test cricketers, and have been actively involved in the game after retirement. Their behaviour in St. Lucia wasn't what the game wanted.

Captain Dinesh Chandimal's deeds and the excuse thereafter that he didn't remember what he was swallowing showed him in poor light.

Sri Lanka Cricket would have contested Chandimal's suspension for ball tampering.; not because he was right but with the hope that it will help him to finish the West Indies tour strong. In the absence of Angelo Mathews, he is the team's leading batsman and in fine form too. However, they are unlikely to contest the more serious offence of captain, coach and manager bringing the game into disrepute. If they do, that will be out of desperation than reason.

There's no cricket board in Colombo at the moment following a court ruling. The affairs of the board are managed by the Sports Ministry until the elections are held later this year. SLC is not sure whether to challenge the ICC CEO's charge and they will arrive at a decision later tonight after consulting the team management in Barbados. To put it precisely, they have been wrong and they have got hardly any case to argue.

The general consensus is that they will be able to get a lenient punishment (suspension for two Tests) by accepting the charge. While the captain is obviously suspended, the coach and manager apart from being prevented from entering the playing area on match days, they are also not allowed to be seen in the dressing room balcony.

A former Test cricketer who works for SLC wasn't too pleased with the deeds of the team like most Sri Lankans.

"The team in no uncertain terms was told to take the field by SLC. You can fight a case off the field, but you can not bring people to ransom and fight cases. There's no point of being arrogant. There are rules and guidelines and if you have deviated, that's not something that you can challenge. All in all, the proper protocol was not followed in St. Lucia, "he said.

On conclusion of third day's play - following a hue and cry by the Sri Lankans - they were submitted with the video evidence that found Chandimal guilty. In the footage, Chandimal is seen cutting a sorry figure as he takes sweets out of his pocket and puts them into his mouth before spitting on his fingers and polishing the ball. Srinath concluded that Chandimal's saliva contained the residue of the artificial substance that he had in his mouth.

That was exactly the same thing that Francois du Plessis got caught for in Hobart two years ago. Du Plessis at least had Philander, Abbott and Rabada to rely on. Chandimal had Kumara, Lakmal and Rajitha to go to.

In Kolkata last year, having nearly cocked up a Test match that they should have easily drawn, the Sri Lankan skipper was seen complaining about poor light with the team being reduced to 75 for seven and that too didn't go down well among the public.

In and around the same time, the Sri Lankans escaped twice without being sanctioned despite evidence emerging that signals went out from the dressing room to seek referrals. Dilruwan Perera was involved in one incident in Kolkata while Kusal Mendis was involved on the other occasion in Abu Dhabi

In St. Lucia, their luck ran out and they have been caught red-handed. The ramifications are extremely serious. Chandimal could miss the entire Test series against South Africa apart from the final Test in West Indies. The coach and manager face a similar predicament. Not too often you see that the coach and manager being penalised by the ICC.

Sri Lankan cricket has gone through some tough times during the last couple of years. St. Lucia is the nadir. No one has control over the team at the moment. There are too many cooks and obviously the soup is spoilt.

© Cricbuzz

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