How the game should be. Fun, carefree. Great photo by Photosightfaces
Trying and failing is fine. Flailing around in public is another thing altogether. Ever since the depressing World Cup, I’ve gotten more news about cricket politics than cricket scores. It’s actually disgusting. Who are the top newsmakers in Sri Lankan cricket? Nishantha Ranathunga, Duleep Mendis, Mahindananda Aluthgamage – old, portly and dodgy politicos and their catchers. The latest fiasco is the SLPL and assorted flailing about whether these guys will fly to India for meetings or not. Who cares? Just play cricket.
The Sri Lanka Premier League is not a terrible idea, especially if it encouraged more local talent. The IPL does that and highlights a lot of people who couldn’t make their national squad. Our tournament, however, seems to be motivated more by money and spite than actual love for the game. The contract was given to an unheard of company (Somerset Entertainment Ventures), incorporated in 2010. The TV was given to a channel headed by the cricket secretary and run by the President’s son and his girlfriend. Then they act confused when no one wants to play their game.
The latest news via Island Cricket is that Indian players aren’t going to play. Which means no one cares, least of all advertisers and TV stations, meaning that this SLPL will have no international audience. This sucks for them but it also sucks for me because they’ve been releasing the cricket board’s various feints and urgent travel plans as press releases, and the Daily Mirror has been covering them.
SMS is a great medium for following test cricket, but it’s merely irritating for following the machinations of the cricket board. I feel really bad for the Sri Lanka cricketers and I feel bad for the fans. The board is just supposed to set up the games and get out of the way. Now they’re front and center, and cricket is on the sidelines. They should all be fired, from the Sports Minister on down.
Cricket Board should be privatized. There’s simply too much money in it.
Sri Rajapakistan launches own T56 league
Sri Rajapakistan’s crooked board on Thursday announced its own glitzy T56 tournament, seeking to emulate the success of the hugely popular Indian Premier League.
The first edition of the Sri Rajapakistan Premier League (SRPL) will be played over 365 days from July 19th 2011 to July 19th 2012 and will feature teams from the island’s seven provinces and big international stars, according to a statement.
“T56’s massive popularity and status as the most exciting and entertaining format of crooked will be further enhanced by this newest tournament to the world of crooked,” read a Sri Rajapakistan Crooked statement.
While SRC kept mum (pronounced dumb) on the infamous despots likely to take part, local bought – and – paid – for – media named the likes of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad , Muhammad al-Gaddafi, Robert Mugabe, Fidel Castro, Kim Jong-Il, Hu Jintao and Omar al-Bashir.
The teams will play each other 25 times, with the top four qualifying for the sham-finals. The winner of the tournament will be decided through a “Computer Jilmart,” and will automatically qualify for the Chumps League Twenty20, which is jointly promoted by the boards of India and South Africa.
All the SRPL games will be day-night encounters and played at Hum Bug Thotta’s Sri Rajapakistan Stadium. Each squad can have a maximum of five tin-pot dictators or despots but the starting XI can have only four of them.
However, in contrast to IPL’s high-profile auctions for players, the tin-pot dictators and despots will be assigned to hunter-killer teams by the Sri Rajapakistan One Family Dictatorship Selection Committee.
The seven teams are Basnahira Boothayaas, Kandurata Kabaragoyas, Nagenahira Nazaraaniyaas, Ruhuna Rajapakayas, Uthura Oooroomeeyaas, Uva Umbalakadayaas and Wayamba White Vans.
The league will be run by the Libyan-based Dumbugga Entertainment, who have bought the rights for 2500 years. The global television rights for the 365 matches have already been sold.
The SRPL could come as a particular blessing for Talaiban and Al Qaeda players. They have been ignored by the money-spinning IPL since the inaugural edition in 2008.
SL cricket started going downhill ever since it protected and nurtured cheats like Murali.
Zoid…for once I can’t agree with you more! Murali is a chucker…if ever there was one…just like Mahinda is a bloody crook and a con man…
I never understood why these anti-Western became so fond of a purely British game. After all, they rejected English-medium education, the (Western) concept of human rights, Western clothing (most of the buggers prefer to wear loincloths), Western concept of beauty (buggers rub their pot belly and scold the children), (Western) concept of federalism/devolution, Western concept of not using the military to terrorize civilians, etc. But the buggers have embraced cricket left and right down to the last detail.
*anti-Western buggers
Yeah I agree. This would also put an end to a cricket team and board that is partly funded by taxpayers via the ministry of sports and the treasury. I don’t believe that the board and the team deserve an earmarked amount from the government considering the kind of money they make!