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A Colombo court has ordered Sachithra Senanayake, the former Sri Lankan who is accused of fixing matches, to refrain from travelling abroad. The 38-year-old off-spinner is accused of attempting to fix games during the 2020 Lanka Premier League (LPL). He played one Test, 49 ODIs, and 24 T20 Internationals for his country between 2012 and 2016.
Senanayake is accused of making a dishonest phone call to two players, offering them money to perform poorly in some LPL games played in November and December of last year.
The Controller General of Immigration and Emigration received a mandate from the Colombo Chief Magistrate's Court on Monday to place Senanayake on a three-month no-travel ban. The Special Investigation Unit of the Sports Ministry had directed the Attorney General's Department to fabricate criminal charges against Senanayake, and they were successful in getting the court order.
However, the 38-year-old ex-cricketer has refuted all of the allegations, calling them 'baseless' and meant to discredit him and his family. The player has also said that he plans to sue. Senanayake submitted an anticipatory bail plea to the Colombo Magistrate in 2021 in an effort to be shielded from arrest, but it was rejected.
Senanayake is the most recent cricketer from Sri Lanka to be implicated in a match-fixing controversy, which has damaged the sport's reputation on the island. Several current and past athletes have recently faced charges, suspensions, or bans for a variety of violations connected to corruption in sports. Sanath Jayasuriya, Nuwan Zoysa, Dilhara Lokuhettige, and Kusal Perera are a few of the well-known names.
For Sri Lanka, Senanayake was originally thought to be a promising spinner, especially in limited-overs cricket. In international cricket, he has claimed 78 wickets, with his best being 4 for 13 against England in ODIs. His career, however, took a negative turn when he was required to undergo corrective work in 2014 after being cited for a questionable bowling action. Since 2016, when he last competed for Sri Lanka, he has been playing domestic cricket on and off.
