Sri Lanka cricket legend Kumar Sangakkara has reiterated the importance of improving the standards of first-class cricket in Sri Lanka to excel once again as a cricketing nation.
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Speaking to BBC Sports, Sangakkara said that though the current crop of national cricketers have ambition and passion to represent the country, they have been held back by administrative upheaval and archaic systems.
“For me, being a Sri Lankan, I am extremely proud of my country and of course our heritage and everything, especially cricket as well because that’s been such a major part of my life. We had so many generations of cricketers over the years who have done wonderful service to the game in Sri Lanka, raising the profile of the game,” Sangakkara said.
“The current bunch of cricketers are no different. They have that same ambition, they have a burning passion for the game, they are fiercely proud of representing their country. But unfortunately, I think they have been held back by administrative upheaval and archaic systems where everyone is extremely resistant to change. That is from a very selfish perspective and nothing to do with improving Sri Lanka cricket,” he added.
Sangakkara believes that Sri Lanka has now been surpassed by other cricketing nations and it is ‘time to draw a line and say it’s enough.’
“I have heard the argument that we won a world cup in 1996 with this system and why should we change it? Other countries have surpassed us in terms of refinements they have made to their first-class cricket structure, their selection policy and all. It’s so late now for Sri Lanka. You can see as a result the negative effects it had on our players and their development. Now, it’s the time to draw a line and say it’s enough, we have to change,” he said.
“It’s not about the brief of a select few and whose ideas are the only ones that count. Even if they can be wrong, it’s about doing the best for your country in terms of having the best systems to filters through the best-finished cricketers to represent the country,” he added.
Sangakkara also urged everyone involved with Sri Lanka cricket to work together putting aside their differences to make the Sri Lanka team the best in the world.
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“I think it’s time for everyone in Sri Lankan cricket to forget rivalries, forget all these different camps, forget whose for what, whether you get on with people or not. I think the real question is if you truly love the game and if you truly love Sri Lankan cricket and if we want our team to be the best in the world, how can we put aside our differences and contribute to develop our cricket. That question needs to be answered now because the longer we will drag this on the worst it will be for our Sri Lankan team,” Sangakkara went onto say.
“Unfortunately, when the Sri Lankan players don’t do well, it doesn’t matter what the underpinning reasons are, the fingers are pointed at the players and I feel very sad and upset about that because I know the talent and potential they have, the sacrifices they have made and I know the passion and ambition they have for playing cricket for Sri Lanka. They can be so much better than we ever were. We have to give them every opportunity to do that” he further added.
