Questions continue to swirl around the selection of Sri Lanka’s squads for the upcoming tour of the West Indies after newly-appointed selection committee chairman Kapila Wijegunawardene distanced his panel from the process.
Speaking to The Daily Morning Sports, Wijegunawardene reportedly stated that the squads for the Caribbean tour had been selected by the previous committee headed by former fast bowler Pramodya Wickramasinghe.
“The Men’s squads for the tour of the Caribbean had been picked by the previous committee,” Wijegunawardene was quoted as saying when asked whether his panel had been responsible for selecting the touring squads.
However, the explanation has only deepened the mystery surrounding the final composition of the white-ball squad.
The previous selection committee had notably omitted fast bowlers Nuwan Thushara and Binura Fernando due to fitness concerns. Sources close to the selection process indicated that even requests from the national captain to include at least one of the two players had been turned down, with selectors taking a firm stance on fitness standards.
Yet, the final squad announced for the tour appears to have taken a different direction, leaving many within cricket circles questioning who ultimately approved the changes.
If the current selectors insist they had no involvement, and the former selectors maintain they would not have included the players owing to fitness issues, attention naturally turns elsewhere.
Speculation has now centred on whether the newly-established Cricket Transformation Committee may have had a role in influencing or altering the final squad composition, although no official clarification has been issued.
The episode has once again exposed the lack of transparency surrounding Sri Lanka Cricket’s decision-making processes, with fans and observers left searching for answers over who exactly holds the authority in selecting the national team.
Until a clear explanation emerges, the selection saga threatens to overshadow preparations for an important overseas tour.
