ICC rejects Sri Lanka’s plea to suspend match-fixing investigations

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has rejected a request by lawyers for four Sri Lankans entangled in a match-fixing fiasco to suspend the ongoing investigations until a determination by the Ministry of Sports.

The ongoing corruption investigation on former cricketers Avishka Gunawardena, Nuwan Zoysa and Dilhara Lokuhettige are already suspended after they appealed to the Geneve-based Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) against the ICC Anti-Corruption Unit’s (ACU) decision to proceed with the arbitration without a fair hearing. The probe on Sri Lanka Cricket’s (SLC) former Performance Analyst Sanath Jayasundara is, however, continuing as he hasn't appealed to CAS.

But now, lawyers representing the four accused wanted the arbitrations to be halted indefinitely as they have sought the view of the Ministry of Sports.

“The ICC does not agree to this request for an indefinite stay of these proceedings,” ICC’s senior legal counsel Sally Clark wrote in an email to their lawyers.

“The ICC's position (as it has been throughout and will continue to be) is that neither the anti corruption codes nor any proceedings under them are subservient to the national laws of (or any domestic proceedings in) Sri Lanka," she says. "In any event, the content of the letter merely suggests that the Minister's Secretary is consulting with the

Minister to obtain the government's view - so, notwithstanding the ICC's clear position,it is entirely unclear what,if anything,will come of this correspondence."

Gunawardena and Zoysa who are attached to SLC's Coaching Department, Lokuhettige, a former cricketer now resident in Australia, and Jayasundara, face charges under the ICC’s Anti- Corruption Code (ACC). They remain suspended for several months.

While the three cricketers are charged with directly or indirectly soliciting, inducing, enticing, instructing, persuading, encouraging or intentionally facilitating any participant to breach the Code , the performance analyst faces charges of offering a bribe to the Sports Minister.

“The ICC has so far acted very reasonably in accommodating your clients' various challenges, appeals,and requests for stays, including by agreeing stays in respect of the underlying proceedings in cases B,C, D,and F," Ms Clark states. "It will not however tolerate any unwarranted further delay in any of the cases. I trust the ICC's position is clear."

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