Three-Test Campaign Copy Given To Sri Lankan Minister (26 Apr 1996)

THREE-TEST CAMPAIGN COPY GIVEN TO MINISTER

The Minister of External and Internal Trade of the Government of Sri Lanka, Kingsley Wickremeratne, now in London, was presented with a copy of a report on the three tests campaign by Ivan Corea, Editor of Sri Lanka Today Magazine.

The Minister, a cricket fan himself was interested to hear about the campaign launched by Sri Lanka Today who are urging the Test and County Cricket Board to give the Wills World Cup Champions a three test series rather than the miserly one test match in 1998 and after 2002.

It was a strange irony that the Department of Trade and Industry hosted Minister Kingsley Wickremeratne and the Sri Lankan Trade Delegation to a grand reception at the Lord`s Cricket Grounds in St. John`s Wood, London in a reception room surrounded by photographs of Imran Khan, Richard Hadlee, Michael Slater, Viv Richards and Ian Botham. The talk was about Sri Lanka bouncing back in trade and of course everyone was talking about the cricket. Sri Lanka found support from the highly influential British business community who feel the TCCB should give Sri Lanka`s World Cup heroes a three test series.

Sri Lanka`s Minister of Trade was delighted to be given a tour of Lords and many in the Sri Lankan Trade delegation hoped that Alan Smith, Chief Executive of the TCCB would change his mind and give the Sri Lankans a three test series - after all he changed plans for South Africa and the West Indies and added on matches for them despite his ten year plan.

Minister Wickremeratne read with interest the British media coverage on Sri Lanka Today magazine`s three test campaign. British members of parliament are also backing the campaign, led by Tom Cox MP who has called on the TCCB to give Sri Lanka three tests.

Source:: Daily News (https://www.lanka.net)