Sri Lanka dissolves national cricket board

Sri Lanka's sports ministry said on Friday it had dissolved the current administration of the national cricket board, which has been tainted by allegations of financial mismanagement.

No specific reason was given for the move, which was immediately followed by the appointment of a new Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) interim committee.

"The committee was automatically dissolved when the new one was appointed," Sports Ministry spokesman Harsha Abeykoon said.

The SLC has been run by successive interim committees -- appointed by the ministry -- for the last seven years.

On Thursday, the ministry said it would abide by a new International Cricket Council (ICC) directive, requiring all national boards to be elected without political interference.

The outgoing committee was headed by former leg-spinner Somachandra de Silva, under whose two-year tenure the island co-hosted the 2011 World Cup.

The tournament left Sri Lanka with a ê69 million bill, and media reports suggested that mismanagement by the SLC had been responsible for cost over-runs.

On Wednesday the ICC launched a probe into "black marketeering" of World Cup tickets, after its executive board received a confidential report criticising the handling of ticket sales in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

De Silva will be replaced by millionaire businessman Upali Dharmadasa, who has already served one stint at SLC chairman from 1996-97.

The new committee's tenure will be restricted to six-months with the sports ministry promising to hold elections -- in line with the new ICC rules -- in January next year.

All member boards have been given until the next ICC meeting in June 2012 to implement the new ruling and a further 12 months -- to June 2013 -- before any sanctions will be considered.

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