Colombo: Three Sri Lankan players are under the investigation by Cricket's world body over alleged corruption, SLC official said on Wednesday.
SLC also insisted that no current national players were involved in the scandal, which is getting probed by the International Cricket Council Anti-Corruption Unit. The official refused to name the players getting investigated.
SLC's statement came after the Sports Minister of the Sri Lanka Dullas Alahapperuma on Tuesday hinted that the current players were being investigated by the ICC for match-fixing.
"What the honourable minister actually mentioned was about an investigation launched by the ICC Anti-Corruption Unit against three former Sri Lanka players and not the current national players," the board said in a statement.
The world body of cricket also refused to make any statement on the same as the investigation is still going on.
Earlier in November, in a bid to stamp out graft that has tainted the country's cricket team, Sri Lanka introduced tough penalties for match-fixing and tightened sports betting restrictions.
Sri Lanka had declared match-fixing in the country illegal. But according to now updated guidelines, Sri Lankans are also prohibited from gambling on overseas contests. If found guilty, a person can be fined up to $555,000 for match-fixing and face10 years in jail.
The families associated or linked with gambling businesses can not be part of cricket's governing body, according to the new rules. The latest provision was introduced to unseat former Sri Lanka Cricket president, Thilanga Sumathipala, who was an executive committee member from his position his family owns a gambling business.
Businessman turned politician Sumathipala has repeatedly denied involvement in the gambling side of the family business.
Harin Fernando, former sports minister of Sri Lanka, had earlier claimed that the cricket body of the country was riddled with graft "from top to bottom". He even went on to say that the ICC considered Sri Lanka one of the world's most corrupt nations.
In 2018 bowler Dilhara Lokuhettige, former Sri Lankan fast bowler was suspended for corruption linked to a limited-over league. Lokuhettige was the third cricketer from the country to get charged under the ICC anti-corruption code after former captain and ex-chief selector Sanath Jayasuriya, and former paceman Nuwan Zoysa.
