At a time when Sri Lanka Cricket is facing a crisis with the national cricket team’s and its captain’s popularity hitting an all time low, allegations of mismanagement of funds were directed at the Sports Ministry, by two former national captains at a media briefing, held in Colombo yesterday.

Ever since Arjuna Ranatunga and his committee was removed from holding office at Sri Lanka Cricket, instead of appointing a new committee, Minister of Sports Gamini Lokuge has carried on the activities of the country’s richest sports body through Ministry Secretary, S. Liyanagama.

Within that short period, two lucrative television deals have been signed by the minister, one to the tune of US$ 6 million and the other worth 65 million US$ and the former captains alleged that the cricket board had suffered significant loss of revenue through one of the deals.

"Television companies were willing to pay as much as 10 million US$ for this series involving five One-Day Internationals and a Twenty-20 against India. We have proof to show that they were willing to pay that much, but how come that at the end of the day, the board negotiated only for a sum of 6 million US$," former captain Hashan Tillekeratne told reporters at the SSC, yesterday.

"In signing both these television deals, the minister has acted on his own in an unethical manner," Tillekeratne said.

Supporting the sentiments of his former team-mate, World Cup winning captain Arjuna Ranatunga, who was removed as Chairman of the Cricket Interim Committee said that he was removed as he was not giving into the minister.

"Cricket is not cricket now. Cricket is a business now. Most people who want to associate themselves with the board right now want to make money through the sport," Ranatunga said.

Ranatunga, speaking on the Indian Premier League tournament, said that he had no problems whatsoever with the tournament or in players’ making money, but called on the national cricketers to get their priorities right. "The IPL is fine. I am fine with players making money. I have no issues with that. But the players should realise what their priorities are. We said that the players can take part in the IPL, but we asked them to ensure they come in time for the Tests in England, which they refused."

"Players should earn, but they should know how to earn money. I have said that you have to put country before money. If the players are not happy with that, that’s not my problem. I can’t help that. They should go and consult their parents and ask whether I am right," Ranatunga said.

"I am not a great friend of Twenty-20. That’s my personal opinion. But there maybe others who like Twenty-20 and I have no problems with that. I never told the players not to go to the IPL. I only told them to think of the country."