Sri Lanka, on Friday, said it would probe allegations of match-fixing in the 2011 World Cup final, a day after a former Sports Minister accused the team of “selling” the match to India.
Speaking in a TV show, Mahindananda Aluthgamage, who was sports minister in 2011 and is currently with the ruling Rajapaksas’ Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (People’s Party SLPP), said: “I tell you today that we sold the 2011 World Cup finals.” The Secretary to Sri Lanka's Sports Ministry has filed a complaint at its special investigations unit to investigate the charge.
Aluthgamage is not the first Sri Lankan politician to make this allegation about the final that India won by six wickets at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium. In 2017, former Sri Lanka captain and former minister Arjuna Ranatunga too sought a probe but didn’t pursue the matter.
Engrossing final
The engrossing 2011 final witnessed India lifting the World Cup after 28 years. Sri Lanka posted 274 for six with Mahela Jayawardene scoring an unbeaten 103.
In the chase, after Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag were dismissed, Sri Lanka sensed a chance before Gautam Gambhir (97) and skipper M.S. Dhoni (91 n.o.) helped the host prevail.
Following Aluthgamage’s allegation, Sri Lanka’s former captains Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara strongly reacted on Twitter.
“Is the elections around the corner? Looks like the circus has started Clown face names and evidence? #SLpolitics #ICC,” Jayawardene tweeted on Thursday. Sri Lanka is due to go for general polls in early August.
Sangakkara added: “He [Aluthgamage] needs to take his “evidence” to the ICC and the Anti corruption and Security Unit so the claims can be investigated thoroughly.”
Following the controversy, Aluthgamage told the Daily Mirror , “I didn’t refer to any player,” and that he was only speaking about officials who had “purchased car companies” after the match.
