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Samarawickrama and De Silva steer Sri Lanka to victory over Bangladesh

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Harshitha Samarawickrama and Nilakshi de Silva’s ice-cool hundred partnership steered Sri Lanka to a seven-wicket win over Bangladesh as they continued their winning start to the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2023.

Harshitha Samarawickrama and Nilakshi de Silva of Sri Lanka celebrate following the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup group A match between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka at Newlands Stadium on February 12, 2023, in Cape Town, South Africa.

Sri Lanka was reduced to 26 for three in the powerplay but Samarawickrama’s assured knock of 69 not out, coupled with De Silva’s unbeaten 41 at the other end, ensured Chamari Athapaththu’s side made it two wins in the space of three days at Newlands.

Bangladesh posted a total of 126 for eight in Cape Town as Oshadi Ranasinghe’s fine spell of three for 23 restricted them to a below-par total.

Laser-precise seamer Marufa Akter ripped through the Sri Lankan top order but Samarawickrama and De Silva steadied the ship to claim Sri Lanka’s first-ever back-to-back wins at a Women’s T20 World Cup and extend their impressive start in Group A.

Bangladesh won the toss and elected to bat in Cape Town – but it was Sri Lanka who landed the first blow in dramatic fashion.

Opening batter Murshida Khatun was run out after facing just a single delivery from a fabulous direct hit from Inoka Ranaweera at a short fine leg.

Sobhana Mostary and wicketkeeper Shamima Sultana set about laying the foundations for the innings before Shamima was stumped by opposite number Anushka Sanjeewani off the bowling of Ranasinghe for 20.

That brought Bangladesh captain Nigar Sultana to the crease, who helped construct a patient partnership alongside No.3 Sobhana.

But it ended inside the 10th over when Sobhana was bowled by Athapaththu for 29.

Bangladesh was struggling to manufacture any form of meaningful partnership and wickets continued to fall at regular intervals throughout the innings.

Shamima succumbed to Ranasinghe for 28 before the off-spinner claimed her third victim by getting Lata Mondal stumped for 11.

That left Shamim a’s side with considerable work to do during the final five overs, but Shorna Akter, Ritu Moni and Nahida Akter were all dismissed cheaply to leave them with a total of 126 for eight at the halfway stage.

Sri Lanka may have fancied their chances setting out in pursuit of a chasable-looking target – but Marufu had other ideas after being handed the ball by Shamima under the Cape Town lights.

The accurate seamer remarkably removed Athapaththu, Vishmi Gunaratne and Sanjeewani without conceding a single run in her spell, tearing through the Sri Lankan top order to leave them reeling at 26 for three inside the powerplay.

But that brought the composed duo of Samarawickrama and De Silva to the crease, who set about the recovery mission with alacrity and continued to chip away at the total.

And they showed no signs of letting their ever-increasing grip on the game slip, bringing up their hundred partnership in the 19th over and guiding their country to a historic second win on the spin at Newlands.

Sri Lanka beat Bangladesh at Cape Town by seven wickets

Bangladesh 126 for eight in 20 overs (Sobhana Mostary 29, Nigar Sultana 28; Oshadi Ranasinghe 3/23, Chamari Athapaththu 2/19)

Sri Lanka 129/3 in 18.2 overs (Harshitha Samarawickrama 69 not out, Nilakshi de Silva 41 not out; Marufa Akter 3/23)

සමරවික්‍රම සහ ද සිල්වා බංග්ලාදේශයට එරෙහිව ශ්‍රී ලංකාව ජයග්‍රහණය කරා මෙහෙයවයි

හර්ෂිතා සමරවික්‍රම සහ නිලක්ෂි ද සිල්වාගේ අයිස් කූල් ශතක සබඳතාව 2023 ICC කාන්තා T20 ලෝක කුසලානය සඳහා ඔවුන්ගේ ජයග්‍රාහී ආරම්භය දිගටම කරගෙන යද්දී බංග්ලාදේශයට එරෙහිව කඩුලු 7 ක ජයග්‍රහණයක් කරා ශ්‍රී ලංකාව මෙහෙයවීය.

ICC කාන්තා T20 ලෝක කුසලාන A කාණ්ඩයේ බංග්ලාදේශය සහ ශ්‍රී ලංකාව අතර 2023 පෙබරවාරි 12 වන දින දකුණු අප්‍රිකාවේ කේප් ටවුන් හි නිව්ලන්ඩ්ස් ක්‍රීඩාංගණයේදී පැවති තරඟයෙන් අනතුරුව ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ හර්ෂිතා සමරවික්‍රම සහ නිලක්ෂි ද සිල්වා සමරයි.

ශ්‍රී ලංකාව පවර්ප්ලේ වලදී කඩුලු 3ක් දැවී ලකුණු 26කට සීමා වූ නමුත් සමරවික්‍රම නොදැවී ලකුණු 69ක් ලබා ගැනීමත්, අනෙක් අන්තයේ දී ද සිල්වා නොදැවී ලකුණු 41ක් ලබා ගැනීමත් සමඟ චමරි අතපත්තුගේ පිල නිව්ලන්ඩ්ස්හිදී දින තුනක් ඇතුළත ජයග්‍රහණ දෙකක් ලබා ගැනීමට සහතික විය.

ඕෂදී රණසිංහ ලකුණු 23කට කඩුලු 3ක් දවා ගැනීමත් සමඟ බංග්ලාදේශය කේප්ටවුන්හිදී කඩුලු 8කට ලකුණු 126ක් රැස් කළේය.

Laser-precise seamer Marufa Akter ශ්‍රී ලංකා ප්‍රමුඛ පෙළේ පිතිකරුවා බිඳ දැමූ නමුත් සමරවික්‍රම සහ ද සිල්වා කාන්තා T20 ලෝක කුසලාන තරඟාවලියකදී ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ පළමු පිට පිට ජයග්‍රහණ වාර්තා කිරීමටත් A කාණ්ඩයේ ඔවුන්ගේ ආකර්ෂණීය ආරම්භය දිගු කිරීමටත් නැව ස්ථාවර කළහ.

බංගලිදේශය කේප් ටවුන්හිදී කාසියේ වාසිය දිනාගෙන පන්දුවට පහරදීමට තීරණය කළේය – නමුත් නාට්‍යමය ආකාරයෙන් පළමු පහර එල්ල කළේ ශ්‍රී ලංකාවයි.

ආරම්භක පිතිකරු මුර්ෂිදා ඛාතුන් දැවී ගියේ ඉනෝකා රණවීරගේ ශෝට් ෆයින් ලෙග්හි දී එල්ල කළ විශිෂ්ට සෘජු පහරකින් එකම පන්දුවකට මුහුණ දීමෙන් පසුවය.

සෝභනා මොස්ටාරි සහ කඩුලු රකින ක්‍රීඩිකාව වන ෂමීමා සුල්තානා ඉනිමට අඩිතාලම දැමීමට පෙර, රණසිංහගේ පන්දුවකට රණසිංහගේ පන්දුවකට ප්‍රතිවිරුද්ධ ශ්‍රේණිගත කිරීම්වල අනුෂ්කා සංජීවනීගේ පන්දුවක් හමුවේ ෂමීමා ස්ටම්ප් කිරීමකට ලක්විය.

ඒ අනුව අංක 3 සෝභනා සමඟ එක්ව ඉවසිලිවන්ත සබඳතාවයක් ගොඩනැංවීමට උදව් කළ බංග්ලාදේශ නායක නිගාර් සුල්තානා ක්‍රීඩාගාරයට ගෙන ආවේය.

එහෙත් එය 10 වැනි ඕවරය තුළදී නිමා වූයේ අතපත්තුගේ පන්දුවකට සෝභනා ලකුණු 29කට දැවී යාමත් සමඟය.

බංගලාදේශය ඕනෑම ආකාරයක අර්ථවත් සබඳතාවක් ගොඩනඟා ගැනීමට මහත් පරිශ්‍රමයක් දැරූ අතර ඉනිම පුරාවට නියමිත කාල සීමාවන්හිදී කඩුලු බිඳ වැටෙන්නට විය.

ලතා මොන්ඩල් ලකුණු 11කට ස්ටම්ප් කිරීමකට ලක්කරමින් පිට දඟ පන්දු යවන්නිය ඇගේ තෙවැනි ගොදුර බවට පත්වීමට පෙර ශමීමා ලකුණු 28කට රණසිංහට යටත් වූවාය.

එය අවසන් ඕවර පහ තුළදී ෂමීමාගේ කණ්ඩායමට කිරීමට සැලකිය යුතු වැඩ කොටසක් ඉතිරි කළ නමුත් ෂෝර්නා අක්ටර්, රිතු මෝනි සහ නහිදා අක්ටර් යන ක්‍රීඩකයන් සියල්ලන්ම අඩු වියදමකින් දැවී ගිය අතර ඔවුන් දෙදෙනාගේ මුළු ලකුණු සංඛ්‍යාව කඩුලු 8ක් දැවී ලකුණු 126ක් වන විට අතරමගදී.

හඹා යා හැකි ඉලක්කයක් හඹා යාම සඳහා ශ්‍රී ලංකාව ඔවුන්ගේ අවස්ථාවන් ගැන සිතුවා විය හැකිය – නමුත් කේප් ටවුන් ආලෝකය යටතේ ෂමිමා විසින් පන්දුව ලබා දීමෙන් පසු මරුෆුට වෙනත් අදහස් තිබුණි.

නිවැරදි නාවික ක්‍රීඩකයා අතපත්තු, විශ්මි ගුණරත්න සහ සංජීවනී ලකුණු නොලබාම ඉවත් කළ අතර, ශ්‍රී ලංකා ප්‍රමුඛ පෙළේ පිතිකරුවන් දවාලමින් ඔවුන් පවර්ප්ලේ තුළ කඩුලු 3ක් දැවී ලකුණු 26ක් ලබාගෙන සිටියේය.

එහෙත්, එය සංයෝජිත වූ සමරවික්‍රම සහ ද සිල්වා යුගලය ක්‍රීස් එකට ගෙන ආ අතර, ඔවුන් ප්‍රකෘතිමත් වීමේ මෙහෙයුමට සූක්ෂම ලෙස ආරම්භ කළ අතර, මුළු ලකුණු සංඛ්‍යාවෙන් දිගටම බිඳ වැටුණි.

19 වැනි ඕවරයේදී ඔවුන්ගේ සබඳතා සියය ඉහළට ගෙන නිව්ලන්ඩ්ස් හි දී දඟ පන්දුවෙන් තම රට ඓතිහාසික දෙවන ජයග්‍රහණයක් කරා ගෙන ගිය ඔවුන් ක්‍රීඩාවේ දිනෙන් දින වැඩි වන ග්‍රහණයට ඉඩ හැරීමේ කිසිදු සලකුණක් නොපෙන්වයි.

ශ්‍රී ලංකාව සහ බංග්ලාදේශය අතර කේප් ටවුන්හිදී පැවැති තරගය කඩුලු හතකින් ජයගැනීමට ශ්‍රී ලංකාව සමත්විය

බංග්ලාදේශය ඕවර 20කදී කඩුලු 8කට 126 (සෝභනා මොස්‌ටරි 29, නිගර් සුල්තානා 28; ඕෂදී රණසිංහ 3/23, චමරි අතපත්තු 2/19)

ශ්‍රී ලංකාව ඕවර 18.2කදී 129/3 (හර්ෂිතා සමරවික්‍රම නොදැවී 69, නිලක්ෂි ද සිල්වා නොදැවී 41; මරුෆා අක්ටර් 3/23)

சமரவிக்ரம மற்றும் டி சில்வா ஆகியோர் இலங்கையை பங்களாதேஷுக்கு எதிரான வெற்றிக்கு அழைத்துச் சென்றனர்

ஹர்ஷிதா சமரவிக்ரம மற்றும் நிலக்ஷி டி சில்வாவின் ஐஸ்-கூல் சதம் பார்ட்னர்ஷிப் 2023 ஐசிசி மகளிர் டி 20 உலகக் கோப்பைக்கு வெற்றியைத் தொடர்ந்ததால், பங்களாதேஷுக்கு எதிராக இலங்கை ஏழு விக்கெட் வித்தியாசத்தில் வெற்றி பெற்றது.

தென்னாப்பிரிக்காவின் கேப்டவுனில் பிப்ரவரி 12, 2023 அன்று நியூலேண்ட்ஸ் ஸ்டேடியத்தில் வங்காளதேசம் மற்றும் இலங்கை அணிகளுக்கு இடையிலான ஐசிசி மகளிர் டி20 உலகக் கோப்பை குரூப் ஏ போட்டியைத் தொடர்ந்து இலங்கையின் ஹர்ஷிதா சமரவிக்ரம மற்றும் நிலக்ஷி டி சில்வா கொண்டாடினர்.

பவர்பிளேயில் இலங்கை 3 விக்கெட்டுக்கு 26 ஆகக் குறைக்கப்பட்டது, ஆனால் சமரவிக்ரமவின் உறுதியான ஆட்டமிழக்காமல் 69 ரன்களும், மறுமுனையில் டி சில்வாவின் ஆட்டமிழக்காமல் 41 ரன்களும் இணைந்து, சாமரி அத்தபத்துவின் தரப்பு நியூலாண்ட்ஸில் மூன்று நாட்களுக்குள் இரண்டு வெற்றிகளைப் பெற்றது.

வங்கதேசம் கேப்டவுனில் 8 விக்கெட்டுக்கு 126 ரன்கள் எடுத்தது, ஓஷதி ரணசிங்கவின் 23 ரன்களுக்கு 3 விக்கெட்டுகளை வீழ்த்தியது.

லேசர்-துல்லியமான சீமர் மருபா அக்டர் இலங்கையின் டாப் ஆர்டரைக் கிழித்தெறிந்தார், ஆனால் சமரவிக்ரம மற்றும் டி சில்வா ஆகியோர், பெண்கள் டி 20 உலகக் கோப்பையில் இலங்கையின் முதல் தொடர்ச்சியான வெற்றிகளைப் பெறுவதற்கும், குரூப் ஏயில் தங்கள் அற்புதமான தொடக்கத்தை நீட்டிப்பதற்கும் கப்பலை நிலைநிறுத்தினர்.

கேப்டவுனில் பங்களாதேஷ் டாஸ் வென்று பேட்டிங் தேர்வு செய்தது – ஆனால் வியத்தகு முறையில் முதல் அடியை வீசியது இலங்கை.

ஷார்ட் ஃபைன் லெக்கில் இனோகா ரணவீரவின் அபாரமான நேரடித் தாக்குதலால், தொடக்க வீரர் முர்ஷிதா கட்டூன் ஒரே ஒரு பந்து வீச்சை எதிர்கொண்டு ரன் அவுட் ஆனார்.

சோபனா மோஸ்டரி மற்றும் விக்கெட் கீப்பர் ஷமிமா சுல்தானா ஆகியோர் இன்னிங்ஸுக்கு அடித்தளம் அமைப்பதற்கு முன், ஷமிமா 20 ரன்களில் ரணசிங்கவின் பந்துவீச்சில் எதிர் தரப்பில் அனுஷ்கா சஞ்சீவனியால் ஸ்டம்பிங் செய்யப்பட்டார்.

அது பங்களாதேஷ் கேப்டன் நிகர் சுல்தானாவை கிரீஸுக்கு கொண்டு வந்தது, அவர் நம்பர்.3 சோபனாவுடன் இணைந்து பொறுமையான பார்ட்னர்ஷிப்பை உருவாக்க உதவினார்.

ஆனால் 10வது ஓவரில் சோபனா 29 ரன்களில் அதபத்துவின் பந்துவீச்சில் ஆட்டமிழந்தார்.

பங்களாதேஷ் எந்த விதமான அர்த்தமுள்ள பார்ட்னர்ஷிப்பை உருவாக்க முடியாமல் திணறிக் கொண்டிருந்தது மற்றும் இன்னிங்ஸ் முழுவதும் சீரான இடைவெளியில் விக்கெட்டுகள் தொடர்ந்து விழுந்தன.

ஷமிமா 28 ரன்களில் ரணசிங்கவிடம் சரணடைந்தார், அதற்கு முன் ஆஃப் ஸ்பின்னர் லதா மோண்டலை 11 ரன்களில் ஸ்டம்பிங் செய்து தனது மூன்றாவது பலியாகக் கூறினார்.

இது இறுதி ஐந்து ஓவர்களில் ஷமிமாவின் அணிக்கு கணிசமான வேலைகளைச் செய்ய வேண்டியிருந்தது, ஆனால் ஷோர்னா அக்டர், ரிது மோனி மற்றும் நஹிதா அக்டர் ஆகியோர் மலிவாக ஆட்டமிழந்தனர், அவர்கள் பாதியில் 8 விக்கெட்டுக்கு 126 ரன்கள் எடுத்தனர்.

துரத்தக்கூடிய-தேடக்கூடிய இலக்கை நோக்கிச் செல்வதற்கான வாய்ப்புகளை இலங்கை கற்பனை செய்திருக்கலாம் – ஆனால் கேப் டவுன் விளக்குகளின் கீழ் ஷமிமாவால் பந்தை ஒப்படைத்த பிறகு மரூஃபுக்கு வேறு யோசனைகள் இருந்தன.

துல்லியமான சீமர் குறிப்பிடத்தக்க வகையில் அதபத்து, விஷ்மி குணரத்னே மற்றும் சஞ்சீவனி ஆகியோரை அவரது ஸ்பெல்லில் ஒரு ரன் கூட விட்டுக்கொடுக்காமல் வெளியேற்றினார், பவர்பிளேயின் உள்ளே அவர்கள் 3 விக்கெட்டுக்கு 26 ரன்களில் தத்தளிக்க, இலங்கை டாப் ஆர்டரைக் கிழித்தார்.

ஆனால் அது சமரவிக்ரமா மற்றும் டி சில்வாவின் இசையமைத்த இரட்டையர்களை கிரீஸுக்கு கொண்டு வந்தது, அவர்கள் மீட்பு பணியை சுறுசுறுப்புடன் தொடங்கி, மொத்தத்தில் தொடர்ந்து வெளியேறினர்.

19வது ஓவரில் தங்களது நூறு பார்ட்னர்ஷிப்பைக் கொண்டு வந்து, நியூலேண்ட்ஸில் ஸ்பின்னில் வரலாற்றுச் சிறப்புமிக்க இரண்டாவது வெற்றிக்கு தங்கள் நாட்டை வழிநடத்தி, ஆட்டத்தில் தொடர்ந்து அதிகரித்து வரும் பிடியை அவர்கள் நழுவ விடுவதற்கான அறிகுறிகளைக் காட்டவில்லை.

கேப்டவுனில் நடந்த வங்கதேசத்தை 7 விக்கெட் வித்தியாசத்தில் வீழ்த்தியது இலங்கை

வங்கதேசம் 20 ஓவரில் 8 விக்கெட் இழப்புக்கு 126 (சோபனா மோஸ்டரி 29, நிகர் சுல்தானா 28; ஒஷாதி ரணசிங்க 3/23, சாமரி அதபத்து 2/19)

இலங்கை 18.2 ஓவர்களில் 129/3 (ஹர்ஷித சமரவிக்ரம ஆட்டமிழக்க 69, நிலக்ஷி டி சில்வா ஆட்டமிழக்காமல் 41; மருபா அக்டர் 3/23)

Cricket

KSCA Officials Resign Over Chinnaswamy Stampede; RCB Faces FIR in Tragic Victory Celebration Fallout

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In a tragic turn of events following Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) historic IPL 2025 title win, a deadly stampede at the celebratory event held at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium claimed 11 lives and injured several others. The aftermath has sparked controversy and accountability issues, leading to major resignations and legal action.

Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) secretary A Shankar and treasurer ES Jairam resigned on Friday, citing “moral responsibility” for the incident. Their resignations were submitted to KSCA president Raghuram Bhat, as questions mount over mismanagement and negligence at the overcrowded venue.

The Bengaluru Police have filed an FIR listing RCB, DNA Entertainment (event partner), and KSCA as accused parties. Police confirmed that the event had not been granted official permission. In a swift move, Nikhil Sosale, RCB’s head of marketing and revenue, was arrested—raising further scrutiny over organizational lapses.

KSCA has filed a writ petition calling the FIR a “knee-jerk” reaction under political pressure. They argued that crowd control and gate management were the responsibilities of RCB and the event organizers, not KSCA.

RCB has announced INR 10 lakh compensation for each victim and committed to covering all medical expenses of the injured. However, the franchise has yet to make a comprehensive public statement.

This incident raises serious concerns about sports event management and safety standards, casting a shadow over what was supposed to be a moment of celebration in Indian cricket

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Football

Asia Leads the Charge as 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers Begin to Take Shape

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The road to the historic 2026 FIFA World Cup is gaining momentum, and Asia is already making its mark on football’s grandest stage. With an expanded format featuring 48 teams and co-hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, this edition promises to be the most inclusive and diverse yet — and Asia is stepping up early.

🇯🇵 Japan Sets the Benchmark for Asia

Japan was the first nation worldwide to book their ticket to the 2026 FIFA World Cup, underscoring their dominance in Asian football. Unbeaten in their qualifying campaign with six wins and one draw, the Samurai Blue continue to be the standard-bearers for the continent.

🇮🇷 Iran Continues Consistent Form

Iran soon followed Japan, securing their seventh overall World Cup appearance and fourth consecutive berth. The team remained undefeated in their group, showcasing the experience and tactical depth that has made them a fixture on the world stage.

🇺🇿 Uzbekistan Makes Historic Debut

In one of the most emotional stories of the qualifiers so far, Uzbekistan qualified for their first-ever FIFA World Cup. A gritty 0-0 draw against the UAE was enough for the Central Asian side to clinch a spot, sparking nationwide celebrations. Their rise highlights the growing strength of second-tier Asian nations on the global stage.

Asia’s Presence Grows in 2026 Format

Asia is guaranteed eight slots in the 2026 World Cup — a significant jump from previous editions — allowing the region to showcase more talent, depth, and emerging football powerhouses. With teams like South Korea, Saudi Arabia, and Australia still in the hunt, the continent could make a serious impact come 2026.

Global Context

The tournament’s expanded format and host countries in North America mark a new era for international football. With 104 matches, 16 host cities, and an increased number of participants, it will be a celebration of global diversity — and Asian nations are ready to shine.

Countries Qualified So Far

  • Asia: 🇯🇵 Japan, 🇮🇷 Iran, 🇺🇿 Uzbekistan
  • Oceania: 🇳🇿 New Zealand
  • South America: 🇦🇷 Argentina

(Additional qualifiers from other confederations are ongoing.)

As the countdown to 2026 begins, all eyes are on Asia’s rising stars — ready to challenge the world and redefine the future of football.

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Cricket

Sachithra Senanayake Indicted in Landmark Match-Fixing Case Under Sri Lanka’s Anti-Corruption Law

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Former Sri Lankan cricketer Sachithra Senanayake has been formally indicted before the Hambantota High Court, marking a historic first in Sri Lanka’s efforts to criminalize corruption in sports. The charges stem from an alleged match-fixing attempt during the 2020 Lanka Premier League (LPL), making Senanayake the first player to face prosecution under Sri Lanka’s Prevention of Offences Related to Sports Act No. 24 of 2019.

Senanayake, currently out on bail, is accused of attempting to influence Colombo Kings player Tharindu Ratnayake to underperform during the tournament. The incident reportedly occurred via a WhatsApp message, which was later flagged by a local anti-corruption officer, prompting an official investigation in 2020.

The case falls under the landmark legislation introduced in 2019 by then Sports Minister Harin Fernando, which criminalizes match-fixing and related offenses in the country. If convicted, Senanayake could face a prison term of up to 10 years, a fine reaching Rs. 100 million, or both.

The indictment signals a serious shift in Sri Lanka’s approach to tackling corruption in sports. Authorities hope this high-profile case will serve as a strong deterrent against similar offenses in the future.

Senanayake, once a celebrated off-spinner and a member of Sri Lanka’s victorious 2014 ICC T20 World Cup squad, now faces the grim prospect of being remembered not for his achievements on the field, but for his role in one of Sri Lanka’s most significant match-fixing scandals.

As the case unfolds, it casts a spotlight on the broader issue of corruption in sports and reinforces the urgent need for integrity, vigilance, and transparent governance across all levels of competition in Sri Lanka

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