Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh 2021: SL cricket in crisis, players reject central contract terms

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) recently offered new contracts to its players, which will see them get a 35% pay cut. The SLC is all set to restructure the contract offered to the players. All categories of cricket will now have further sub-categories with different base fee prices for the players. Each category will now be divided into three tiers, which will see the reduced salary of the players accordingly.

Angelo Matthews, Dinesh Chandimal among others reject SLC's new contracts

Previously, a Sri Lanka cricket team player in the top category would have earned around USD 130,000, but now the new structure will see the salary drop to USD 100,000. Category A will see the Tier 1 players get a salary of USD 100,000 with Category B at a price of USD 65,000, Category C at a price of USD 50,000 and Category D with a salary of USD 35,000. Each category will see a further reduced fee in its subsequent lower tiers. The SLC will also be given the central contracts to only 30 players for the 2021-22 year.

According to a recent report by InsideSport, leading Sri Lanka cricket team players like Angelo Mathews, Suranga Lakmal and Dinesh Chandimal along with Test skipper Dimuth Karunaratne have rejected to sign contracts offered by SLC after they have been forced to take massive pay cuts. With the three-match Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh 2021 ODI series set to get underway from May 23 and the England vs Sri Lanka 2021 series to follow, there is a cloud of uncertainty looming over the presence of the aforementioned players for the tour.

The new contracts have been most profitable for wicketkeeper Niroshan Dickwella and Dhananjaya de Silva who will each earn USD 100,000 and are the only two players in the top category. On the other hand, Angelo Mathews will miss out on USD 50,000 after his retainer was cut from USD 130,000 to USD 80,000. Moreover, Dimuth Karunaratne, who has gone from strength to strength in the longest format of the game and has put in brilliant performances consistently, will also receive a pay cut of USD 30,000.

The southpaw, who earned USD 100,000, will now receive USD 70,000. Suranga Lakmal will also get a pay cut of USD 45,000 as he has been demoted to the second category from the first tier where he earned USD 100,000 the previous year. 

Kusal Perera appointed as Sri Lanka new ODI captain

Recently, SLC announced an 18-member squad for the upcoming Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh 2021 ODI series. The SLC sprung some huge surprise as they appointed a new captain and a vice-captain for the upcoming ODI series vs Bangladesh. Kusal Perera has been named the Sri Lanka new ODI captain as he replaces Dimuth Karunaratne who has been dropped from the side after he recently led the Lankans to a loss in the three-match ODI series in West Indies.

Kusal Mendis has been appointed as Kusal Perera's deputy in the ODI format. The changes have been made keeping in mind the upcoming ICC Cricket World Cup 2023. As far as T20Is are concerned, there hasn't been any announcement and Dasun Shanaka is likely to continue leading the side in the shortest format of the game.

Lasith Malinga likely to play T20 World Cup 2021 in India

While it has been a long time since Lasith Malinga last played a competitive game, he still is in the Sri Lankan selectors' scheme of things and can soon be seen playing for his country in T20Is. According to a Morning Sports report, National Selection Committee Chairman Pramodya Wickramasinghe, recently, said that they will talk to Malinga soon and added that the legendary bowler is in their plans for the forthcoming T20 tours, including the T20 World Cup coming up in October.

Wickramasinghe, who took over as new selection committee head only last month, revealed that Lasith Malinga is also in their plans. He opined that one should never forget that the former Mumbai Indians team star is one of the greatest bowlers in their country, even in his present form and his records speak for that. The Sri Lankan selection committee chairman suggested that there are two back-to-back T20 World Cups that are coming up, this year and the next year, which is why they are going to discuss their plans with Malinga when they meet him.

SOURCE: SRI LANKA CRICKET TWITTER