Sri Lankan batting legend Sanath Jayasuriya was charged on two counts for non-cooperation in an ongoing ICC anti-corruption probe and given two weeks to respond by cricket's world governing body.
The ICC did not specify what exactly prompted its action against the celebrated cricketer, who is a World Cup winner and played 110 Tests and 445 ODIs.
However, a source in Sri lanka Cricket told PTI that the former player is in the line of fire for "trying to block" an ICC probe which began in 2015. The investigation into Sri Lankan cricket began after Galle curator Jayananda Warnaweera was banned for three years in 2016 for failing to cooperate with the Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU).
Jayasuriya has been charged with two offences under the ICC's anti-corruption code.
- Article 2.4.6 Failure or refusal, without compelling justification, to cooperate with any investigation carried out by the ACU, including failure to provide accurately and completely any information and/or documentation requested by the ACU as part of such investigation.
- Article 2.4.7 Obstructing or delaying any investigation that may be carried out by the ACU, including concealing, tampering with or destroying any documentation or other information that may be relevant to that investigation and/or that may be evidence or may lead to the discovery of evidence of corrupt conduct under the Anti-Corruption Code.
Starting on Monday, Jayasuriya has 14 days to respond to the charges.
One of Sri Lanka's greatest cricketers, the 49-year-old was the player of the 1996 World Cup which is Sri Lanka's first and only World Cup trophy and his Test career lasted over a decade.
"At first, he refused to join the prob when the ACU investigations' team approached him last year. He also declined the request to part with the information in his phone, which was relevant to the investigators," the SLC source said.
"But the ICC has not charged him with either match-fixing or any corrupt activities. The charge against him is only non-cooperation in probe," he added.
According to ESPNCricinfo, Sri Lanka's 2017 ODI home series against Zimbabwe, which the islanders lost, is under the ICC's scanner. Jayasuriya was into his second term as chairman of selectors at that time.
In 2013, he became the selection committee's chairman for the first time. The tenure ended in 2015 after a string of failures by the Lankan team.
His second innings in the job, which began in 2015 itself, ended after the team's home series debacle against India in 2017.
After signing off from international cricket, Jayasuriya tried his hands at politics and in 2010 became an elected member of the Sri Lankan parliament, a stint which ended in 2015. He also served as a minister during the time.
(With inputs from PTI)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)