All eyes are on Sports Minister Namal Rajapaksa to develop the sport of cricket in Sri Lanka, former Sri Lanka skipper Arjuna Ranatunga said.
Ranatunga said the President and Prime Minister are both relatives of Namal Rajapaksa, and if Namal cannot build the sport of cricket, then no other Sports Minister can ever complete the task.
The former Sri Lanka cricket world cup winning captain said there were many incidents of individuals obtaining the assistance of the President and Prime Minister of the Yahapalana Government in 2015 to obstruct changes to the sport.
He said Rajapaksa, who is knowledgeable on sports, will not face any such instances of influence when developing the sport, due to his connection to the President and Prime Minister.
Speaking during a program on Sirasa TV, Arjuna Ranatunga said they expect Sports Minister Namal Rajapaksa to introduce some new system to rebuild the sport of cricket in Sri Lanka.
Meanwhile, also joining the program, former Sri Lanka batting legend Sanath Jayasuriya called on Sports Minister Rajapaksa to hand over the administration of cricket to fellow former cricketer Arjuna Ranatunga.
He pointed out that Ranatunga will play a key role in restoring the glory of Sri Lanka in the cricketing arena.
Meanwhile, commenting on the recently concluded England test series, Ranatunga said his former team mates Aravinda de Silva and Sanath Jayasuriya could have easily destroyed the English spinners if they had practiced for 3 days even now.
The English spinners dominated the second test, which England won by six wickets.
“Although I’ve put on a lot of weight now, I think I too can handle them” Ranatunga added.(NewsWire)