ICC lift suspension on SLC with immediate effect

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has been reinstated as a member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) after a two-month suspension, the ICC said on Sunday. SLC were banned in November for breaching obligations as an ICC Member.

SLC was suspended in November last year after being found to have been in breach of its obligation as an ICC member.

An official release by the ICC confirmed that the ICC Board has been following the situation since the suspension and are now satisfied that SLC are not in breach of the obligations that an ICC member is supposed to comply with. 

“SLC was suspended in November for being in serious breach of its obligations as an ICC Member, in particular, the requirement to manage its affairs autonomously and ensure that there is no government interference in the governance, regulation and / or administration of cricket in Sri Lanka,” ran the ICC media release.

“The Board have been monitoring the situation since the suspension and are now satisfied that SLC are no longer in breach of membership obligations,” they added.
During the suspension, Sri Lanka Men hosted Zimbabwe for three ODIs and three T20Is. After playing in the Asia Cup in Dubai, the Under-19s team are now playing in the World Cup.

Though SLC were under suspension, The ICC decided that Sri Lanka can continue to compete internationally both in bilateral cricket and ICC events, but the ongoing U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup was moved to South Africa, having initially been set to be played in Sri Lanka.

It all started when auditor general had filed a detailed 112-page report accusing the board of poor governance, corruption and misuse of funds. In the aftermath of the report, the Sri Lankan board led by President Shammi Silva, during the course of the 2023 World Cup, was sacked. An appeal in the court led to the board being temporarily reinstated and then sacked again soon after before again resuming duties.