ESPNcricinfo
The anti-corruption tribunal of the ICC has banned Sanath Jayasundara, a former Sri Lanka Cricket performance analyst, from all cricket for seven years after he was found guilty of breaching the ICC anti-corruption code. In January 2019, Jayasundara had attempted to bribe Sri Lanka’s then sports minister Harin Fernando to try and “influence improperly the result, progress, conduct or any other aspect of an international match”.
The tribunal found Jayasundara guilty of:
• Article 2.1.3 – offering bribes or other rewards to the country’s sports minister to contrive in any way or otherwise influence improperly the result, progress, conduct or any other aspect of an international match
• Article 2.4.7 – obstructing or delaying an ACU investigation into possible corrupt conduct under the anti-corruption code
“Jayasundara’s attempt to bribe a Minister is a grave transgression while the efforts to cover up his tracks and the lack of remorse are hugely disappointing,” Alex Marshall, general manager of the ICC’s integrity unit, said in a statement. “We won’t tolerate corrupt conduct in our sport and my team will be relentless in preventing such behaviour.
This ban should serve as a deterrent for anyone who may be tempted along the wrong path.”
The ban is backdated to 11th May 2019, when he was provisionally suspended.
Fernando is understood to have reported the alleged attempted bribe to the ACU at the time of it taking place, less than a month after he had been appointed sports minister in December 2018.
A long-time employee of Sri Lanka Cricket, Jayasundara had worked with Sri Lanka’s Under-19 team in addition to his duties with the board’s Brain Centre, and had also worked with the men’s national team in the past.