Minister of Sports Harin Fernando announced that a complaint has been lodged with the International Cricket Council (ICC) regarding the lengthy travel times and hardships the Sri Lankan team faced during the Group Stage matches of the 2024 T20 World Cup.

Speaking in Parliament this morning (07), Fernando highlighted that a separate investigation will be conducted into the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) representative who traveled to the USA to address concerns about the team’s facilities.

“The Sri Lanka, Ireland, and South Africa cricket teams were stranded at the airport for seven hours due to a technical error with their flight. Sri Lanka Cricket has filed a complaint with the ICC regarding the incident. Each country has been treated differently… The Bangladesh team has traveled the most in terms of kilometers, followed by Sri Lanka”, the Sports Minister expressed.

“The USA Cricket Association is currently banned by the ICC, yet the ICC is holding this tournament in the USA,” the minister added. 

“We instructed 2 to 3 weeks ago, to send an SLC representative to ensure the team is not inconvenienced. The cricket body appointed a person for this task. He has been there. Action will be taken against him as well, accordingly”, he said.

Meanwhile, during today’s Parliamentary session, Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa emphasized that the country must stand up against ICC’s injustices.