New Delhi, . Former Sri Lanka men's cricketer Duleep Samaraweera has been banned from holding any position in Australian cricket for 20 years following an integrity investigation where he was found to have committed serious breaches of the code of conduct.
Samaraweera, who played seven Tests and five ODIs for Sri Lanka from 1993 to 1995, was under investigation after being accused of alleged misconduct involving a female player. He initially joined Cricket Victoria in 2008 as a specialist batting coach before being appointed interim head coach of the women's team in November last year.
“The Conduct Commission found that Samaraweera engaged in inappropriate behaviour that breached Article 2.23 of CA's Code of Conduct. The allegations of inappropriate conduct arose while Samaraweera was employed by Cricket Victoria (CV).
“The CA Integrity Department investigates complaints brought to it under the Integrity Code and policies that also apply to state and territory associations. The Conduct Commission hears matters referred to it by CA Integrity.
Cricket Australia (CA) said in a statement on Thursday, “CA and CV are committed to providing a safe environment for all players and staff and the welfare of victims of abuse is of paramount importance. We strongly encourage the reporting of inappropriate behaviour, which can be done directly through the CA Integrity Unit or the Core Integrity Hotline.''
Section 2.23 of the Code refers to conduct that either: (a) is contrary to the spirit of cricket; (b) is unbecoming of a representative or official; (c) is or may be detrimental to the interests of cricket; or (d) brings or may bring the game of cricket into disrepute.
In May this year, Samaraweera, whose younger brother Thilan has played 81 Tests and 53 ODIs for the Sri Lanka men's team, was appointed to the position on a full-time basis on a two-year contract but stepped down in less than two weeks and was replaced by Melbourne Renegades WBBL assistant coach Andrew Christie.
Samaraweera, 52, was in line to take up the coaching role with the Australia A women's team for the multi-format series against India A in August this year but was removed from the position after serious misconduct allegations surfaced against him.
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Image Credit: Khas-Khabar.