Away from the prying eyes the Lanka Premier League (LPL) showcased its ugly side on yet another occasion with managers of cricketers holding sway calling the shots at a player auction this week in Colombo.
In one of the shocking dirty dealings of shady characters, one of the country’s best acclaimed T20 batters Pathum Nissanka could not find a buyer in the first round as he supposedly did not have an influential manager and was only snapped up in the second round.
But another player Kusal Janith Perera noted for his T20 batting prowess was dealt a knock-out blow and did not have a buyer even in the second round while ageing players in their late 30s who are able to pay their managers or agent commissions found buyers for as much as 100,000 US dollars in the dispute-ridden bidding process.
That Pathum Nissanka raked in a mere 40,000 US dollars was proof of the sham and scam as the Sunday Observer discovered that players who strike deals with their managers on payment of a commission had a better chance of being bought by teams than a player without any affiliation.
Five teams, Galle Marvels, Kandy B Love, Colombo Strikers, Dambulla Thunders and Jaffna Kings were in the fray at the LPL bidding process.
But teams and players don’t have to go all out to make an impact or win the title as what matters most is that sponsors of teams will be happy as long as they can advertise their goods and services with the players and teams during the matches.
Cheated or gullible Sri Lankan cricket followers who patronize the matches see the occasion as some kind of an outing or entertainment or take pride in believing their country is matching up to the high profile Indian Premier League (IPL).
“There is a huge racket taking place that cannot be seen. It is a free for all. It is not about cricket and Sri Lanka. It is about doing business and making some money. The players know this, the managers know this, the coaches know this and the team owners know this. So what do you expect”, said one player who was unsold.
But LPL Tournament Director Samantha Dodanwela who was at hand to monitor the player auction said all managers of players were shut out and not allowed inside the chamber during the bidding process which prevented any manipulation.
“We did not allow a single manager of players to be present while the auction was taking place. We also invited the ICC (International Cricket Council) to be present. We laid down the rules and some were not happy about it”, said Dodanwela.
The Sunday Observer however learns that player managers had the freedom to strike deals with team owners outside ahead of the auction to have their players bought.
But none could have prevented the LPL from being brought into disrepute when police arrested and detained the owner of one team Dambulla Thunders named as Tamim Rahman who is a Bangladeshi holding British citizenship on charges of match-fixing.
He was at the player auction.
