International Cricket Council (ICC) chairman Jay Shah will arrive here on Friday on a whistle-stop tour and meet Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, with the SLC interim committee issue expected to be high on the agenda, government sources said.

Shah will be travelling on the inaugural direct flight between Ahmedabad and Colombo.

Shah is expected to discuss the appointment of the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) interim committee, which the ICC views as contrary to its rules regarding the functioning of national cricket governing bodies.

Sri Lanka's Sports Minister Sunil Kumar Gamage appointed the current interim committee to run SLC in late April.

The ICC last week, according to cricket sources here, sent a letter to SLC CEO Ashley de Silva. Although the contents of the letter have not been made public, the world governing body was believed to have insisted on holding democratic elections without delay to run SLC affairs.

The interim committee had expected the ICC to grant it indefinite time to implement reforms, including the formulation of a new constitution for the governing body.

The interim committee replaced the executive committee elected in 2025, headed by Shammi Silva, whose term was scheduled to end only in May next year.

Silva and his team resigned, apparently after being told to do so by Dissanayake, who had expressed dissatisfaction with the functioning of his committee.

In 2024, action by the then sports minister to sack Silva's administration led to the ICC suspending Sri Lanka's membership. The ICC Under-19 World Cup was subsequently awarded to South Africa due to Sri Lanka's suspension.

The ICC lifted the ban after a local court restored Silva as head of SLC.

Source: Economic Times

--Agencies