JOIN USRandiv was suspended for Thursday’s match against New Zealand and fined his full match fee, while Dilshan, too, had to forfeit his entire match fee for their parts in the no-ball that prevented Virender Sehwag from reaching his 13th one-day century on Monday night.
While SLC’s media release didn’t go into details, it is clear that Dilshan has been identified as the instigator behind the intentional no-ball when Randiv overstepped by more than a foot.
Dilshan can count himself distinctly lucky to have got away lightly, while the young Randiv, culpable for following instructions from a senior player who is also a former national captain, was slapped with a heavier sentence, most likely as a deterrent against adopting similar questionable tactics in the future.
By acting quickly, and decisively, SLC has made its commitment to upholding the spirit of the game supremely obvious. Sri Lanka are one of the most well-liked teams in international cricket and have won numerous fans with their impeccable behaviour on and off the field, which is exactly why both SLC and skipper Kumar Sangakkara have been at once annoyed and angered by Monday’s turn of events.
At Wednesday’s meeting which lasted more than three hours, the interim board also advised Sangakkara “to ensure that repetition of such incidents do not occur, where disrepute will be brought to the game of cricket, affecting the spirit of the game.”
Reaffirming its commitment to the spirit of cricket, the release stated: “Sri Lanka Cricket is extremely proud of its team and their achievements over the years. It is of paramount importance to maintain the discipline of the gentlemen’s game, especially with Sri Lanka Cricket being winners of the ‘ICC Spirit of the Game’ award for two consecutive years.
“As such, SLC has taken a stern decision against Suraj Randiv and TM Dilshan for their actions during the one-day international against India (on August 16), wherein Virender Sehwag was deprived of scoring his century due to the delivery of a no-ball by Suraj Randiv.”
While announcing Randiv’s suspension and the forfeiture of the match fee, SLC added, “Dilshan’s interference in this issue has resulted in his match fee for the same match also being forfeited.”