Sri Lanka cricket refuses to back out, hopes to host Women's Champions Trophy

Sri Lanka Cricket's interim administration says it will press ahead with sweeping reforms while trying to retain hosting rights for the 2027 Women's Champions Trophy. The push now hinges on convincing the ICC that governance changes can meet both domestic demands and its strict non-interference rules.Sangakkara said SLC will need to work closely with ICC (Courtesy: AFP)Sri Lanka Cricket's interim administration is determined to implement sweeping reforms and retain the hosting rights for the inaugural Women's Champions Trophy, despite growing uncertainty over whether the tournament will be staged in the country.The six-team T20 competition is scheduled for February 2027, but concerns over political involvement in the running of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) have raised the possibility of the International Cricket Council (ICC) shifting the event to another venue.Interim Committee chairman Eran Wickremaratna, who was appointed by Sri Lanka's sports minister, said the governing body intends to overhaul SLC's administration at its most basic level."We are very committed to really correcting from the very foundation. We are not backing out," said Wickremaratna, as quoted by PTI. The issue has already come up in discussions with the ICC. Interim Committee member Prakash Schaffter revealed that the world governing body had indicated around two-and-a-half months ago that it was exploring options outside Sri Lanka to host the tournament."Although they have not categorically told us their decision due to governance issues with SLC, we are hoping we will be able to demonstrate to them the steps we have taken so that they may even be persuaded to play it here," Schaffter told reporters on Monday. Former Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara, who is also part of the interim committee, stressed the importance of maintaining a strong working relationship with the ICC as the country attempts to address the concerns surrounding its cricket administration."We are passing the phase of formulating a new constitution and then have an elected body," Sangakkara said.The present interim setup took charge in April after the previous SLC leadership was instructed to step down following allegations of mismanagement and corruption.The sports minister subsequently established the Transformation Committee to overhaul the board's constitution and introduce changes to its governance framework.However, the proposed reforms come against the backdrop of the ICC's long-standing position that governments should not interfere in the administration of its member cricket boards. Sri Lanka's interim officials are therefore racing to demonstrate that the planned changes can satisfy both domestic reform requirements and the ICC's governance expectations.- EndsPublished On: Aug 31, 2026 16:05 IST