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Sri Lanka's Sports Minister Harin Fernando announced on February 1 that, with their suspension lifted, the country will host the Annual General Meeting of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in July.
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) had faced suspension due to government interference in its operations. This suspension resulted in the island nation missing the opportunity to host the Under-19 World Cup, currently taking place in South Africa.
"Sri Lanka gets to host the ICC AGM from July 19-22 in Colombo. This will be a great boost for Sri Lanka with regards to cricket and tourism," Fernando, who is also the minister of tourism, said in a statement.
SLC was suspended on November 10, 2023, for not meeting its ICC Member obligations, specifically, failing to independently manage its affairs and prevent government interference in the regulation and administration of cricket in Sri Lanka.
READ MORE: ICC takes major step on Sri Lanka Cricket's suspension ahead of T20 World Cup 2024
The predecessor of Fernando Roshan Ranasinghe appointed an interim committee, citing corruption within SLC. The committee was chaired by the former World Cup-winning captain Arjuna Ranatunga.
The ICC stated that Ranasinghe's decision to appoint an interim committee violated its governance rules.
However, the suspension was lifted on January 28 after Fernando nullified the gazette issued by Ranasinghe in December.
During the ICC board meeting on November 21, it was decided that Sri Lanka could continue participating in bilateral cricket and ICC events. However, the U19 Men's Cricket World Cup, which was initially scheduled to be held in Sri Lanka, was relocated to South Africa.
The ICC announced that they are now satisfied with SLC's compliance with membership obligations, as stated in a press release.
The suspension of SLC came after a turbulent period in cricket governance in Sri Lanka, triggered by the disappointing performance of the men's team in the ongoing 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup in India, where Sri Lanka failed to advance to the knockout stages.
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