Sumathipala not sent for ICC's meeting

Sri Lanka's official representation at the ongoing ICC Executive meeting in Delhi has descended into confusion as their Minister of Sports opted to send a ministry representative to the meeting in place of Thilanga Sumathipala, Sri Lanka Cricket's international envoy.

Jeevan Kumaratunga, the sports minister, sent Damian Fernando to India on Thursday morning. "We have informed the responsible international cricket authorities through the proper channels that Damian Fernando would be representing Sri Lanka," Kumaratunga told The Daily Mirror.

Sumathipala, who is standing for a fifth term as board president later this month, also departed for Delhi to participate in the meeting according to cricket officials. However, the same newspaper's sources claimed he had not joined the official discussions on the opening day of talks.

An ICC press release confirmed the unusual goings-on. "At the start of the meeting Mr Thilanga Sumathipala represented Sri Lanka Cricket," read the statement. "At the lunch break of the meeting on the first day, the ICC received correspondence from Sri Lanka Cricket indicating that Mr Sumathipala was, in fact, no longer the representative of the Board. Mr Damian Fernando joined the meeting at the beginning of the second day of the meeting as an observer representing Sri Lanka Cricket."

The key issues that were raised during the two-day summit meeting included the disbandment of Project USA, a reduced status for Kenyan cricket, the awarding of full international status to this autumn's Super Series, and various governance reforms, including one topic of particular interest for the ambitious Sumathipala: the decision to suspend the automatic rotation of the ICC presidency and award Ehsan Mani an extra year in charge.