In a strongly-worded analysis of the latest happenings in the Asia Cup, Arjuna Ranatunga, the former captain of Sri Lanka, has expressed his dissatisfaction with the choice to designate a backup day specifically for the India-Pakistan Super 4 showdown during the tournament.
Arjun Ranatunga, the respected former captain of Sri Lanka known for his candidness, has raised issues about the choice taken by the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) to stage the tournament in Colombo, despite the ongoing risk of severe rain.
Last Friday, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), who were serving as the tournament hosts, made a last-minute decision to incorporate a reserve day for the India-Pakistan match in Colombo due to the looming rain forecast. This sudden shift aroused controversy as it seemed to benefit India and Pakistan, potentially disturbing the fair playing field.
Ranatunga, widely considered as one of cricket’s sharpest captains and leaders, played a vital part in raising Sri Lanka’s status in global cricket. In addition to his great playing career, he also contributed to the ICC’s Cricket Committee and temporarily held the role of chairman at Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC).
The 59-year-old has raised his reservations about the ACC and the International Cricket Council (ICC), calling them as ineffectual bodies when dealing with influential cricket boards.
“I don’t know whether the ICC is acting today or whether we have ICC. They always say ICC is the toothless tiger. They act in a very unprofessional way. I think they are the ones who should look at cricket and protect cricket. Ultimately, cricket should be controlled by the ICC, not by a country or an individual,” he said while interacting with Select Media.
The way this edition of the Asia Cup handled everything, from choosing the tournament hosts to introducing a hybrid model and sticking with Colombo as the venue despite challenging weather conditions, has certainly left the cricketing world surprised. Sharing his disappointment regarding the players’ hesitancy to voice their concerns about rule changes made during the middle of the tournament, the captain who led his team to a World Cup victory added his thoughts.
“I am not very comfortable with some of the things, especially when you have a tournament where you change rules for one team. You’re looking at a disaster in the future. No one talks about it. Have you ever seen a single cricketer talk about this rule change? No. Why? They don’t want to miss the buck. Simple as that,” Ranatunga expressed his disappointment.
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