England vs Sri Lanka Series in Danger as Srilankan Players Deny to Sign Contracts Offered by the Board


England vs Sri Lanka Series in Danger as Srilankan Players Deny to Sign Contracts Offered by the Board

Sir Lanka players

Sri Lanka is expected to fly off to England on Wednesday to play 3 ODIs and 3 T20Is over the span of the month. This will serve as the perfect practice for the English cricketers who have the Ashes series all lined up later this year.

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But it is quite possible that this series could be postponed or even canceled. According to a report by Crictracker, 38 players have refused to sign a new contract for the upcoming series.

What went wrong for the Sri Lanka players?

Sir Lanka players
Sir Lanka players

Usually, each cricket team signs an annual contract for the said year. However, since last year, the Sri Lankan board hasn’t renewed the contract for the team. In fact, they have handed out temporary contracts to their players just before any series.

The Sri Lankan players are reportedly frustrated with the new method their board is following. As a result, a plethora of players have flat out denied to sign new contracts.

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What’s more is the fact that the board’s new annual contracts offer low salaries and incentives on basis of their performances. The players quite understandably are unhappy with this arrangement and refuse to take part in this fiasco.

The players released this statement to explain their side of story, “Because of the problems with the transparency of the ratings system devised by SLC, the players will not sign the tour contract.The tour contract also refers to matters of the annual [main] contract for 2021, which is yet unsigned. In the event, the annual contract is not settled and a dispute is pending, the validity of the tour contract referring to an unsigned contract is also an issue.”

Name of the players who have denied to sign these lopsided contracts

Kusal Perera, Dimuth Karunaratne, Angelo Mathews, Dananjaya de Silva, Dinesh Chandimal, Kusal Mendis, Niroshan Dickwella, Suranga Lakmal, Dasun Shanaka, Wanindu Hasaranga, Lasith Embuldeniya, Pathum Nissanka, Lahiru Thirimanne, Dushmantha Chameera, Kasun Rajitha, Lakshan Sandakan, Vishwa Fernando, Isuru Udana, Oshada Fernando, Ramesh Mendis, Lahiru Kumara, Danushka Gunathilaka, Ashen Bandara, Akila Dananjaya, Chamika Karunaratne, Asitha Fernando, Binura Fernando, Shiran Fernando, Avishka Fernando, Ishan Jayaratne, Charith Asalanka, Dananjaya Lakshan, Nuwan Pradeep, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Kamil Mishara, Praveen Jayawickrama, Roshen Silva, Minod Bhanuka

What is your take on the current situation between the Sri Lankan board and players? Which side are you supporting? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

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