- Reiterates commitment to formulate constitution
- Refutes claims of financial strain, delayed staff salaries
- India due for Tests since 2017
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) is yet to formally agree with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on any white-ball fixtures during India’s upcoming two-match Test tour of Sri Lanka, according to SLC Cricket Transformation Committee Secretary Prakash Schaffter.
Shubman Gill’s men are slated to arrive in the island nation for their first red-ball tour in nine years, having whitewashed their South Asian neighbours 3-0 under now-retired Virat Kohli during their encounter during the previous series.
In the latest series, the first Test is to be played from 15–19 August at the Galle International Cricket Stadium, followed by the second and final Test from 23–27 August at the SSC Cricket Ground, Colombo with the series being a part of the ongoing International Cricket Council (ICC) World Test Championship (WTC) cycle for 2025–’27.
The previous SLC Executive Committee headed by the ousted Shammi Silva had reportedly sought a three-match T20I series with the current world champions as a flood relief fundraiser for victims of the November 2025 Cyclone Ditwah disaster.
When contacted, the Cricket Transformation Committee Secretary confirmed that a decision to formally agree with the BCCI on any white-ball matches during India’s forthcoming Test tour was still to be made.
Asked whether the ICC had set a definite timeframe for the caretaker panel to remain in office, Schaffter said that no such deadline had been set down for the nine-member committee, which assumed control of the Maitland Place institution in late April.
“The answer to that is no, they have not set any definite timeline,” the son of former All Ceylon legendary fast bowler Chandra Schaffter told The Sunday Morning Sports.
“However, at the same time, I must insist that the Transformation Committee is committed to formulating a new constitution for SLC and thereby paving the way for elections at the earliest.”
The game’s global body had imposed a seven-week-long suspension on Sri Lanka from November–December three years ago, as the SLC was deemed to have breached its obligations as a member, in particular the requirement to manage its affairs autonomously and sans State interference.
The trigger was then Sports Minister Roshan Ranasinghe firing the entire SLC Executive Committee in the aftermath of Sri Lanka’s poor World Cup performance in India in 2023, followed by the appointment of an Interim Committee – only for Shammi Silva to reclaim his position via legal action.
Schaffter also refuted claims that SLC was currently facing undue financial strain and maintained that any rumours of delayed staff salaries at the sport’s domestic governing body were equally untrue.
The Transformation Committee, led by former MP Eran Wickramaratne, was installed by the Government following public outcry against the elected SLC Executive Committee of Silva over the national team’s continuous failings at international level.
The Transformation Committee also includes the likes of former cricket icons Sidath Wettimuny, Roshan Mahanama, and Kumar Sangakkara, legal luminaries Dinal Phillips and Upul Kumarapperuma, and Thushira Radella and Avanthi Colombage from the corporate sector.
Sri Lanka is currently touring the West Indies for a multi-format series of matches with the visitors having won the rain-marred three-match ODI series 1-0, after which their hosts took the three-game T20I series 2-1.
The two-match Test series, which will count for the WTC 2025–’27, will start on 25 June with the second and final Test set to begin on 3 July, with both to be played at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in North Sound.