Ahead of the second edition of the Lanka Premier League (LPL 2021), two franchises Dambulla Viiking and Colombo Kings are terminated. The exclusive rights holder of the LPL, the Innovative Production Group FZE (IPG), has said it has dropped the Colombo Kings and Dambulla Viiking sides for breach of contract.
Colombo Kings is owned by the Saza Group of Murfad Mustafa of Dubai and Dambulla Viiking is owned by the Telugu Warriors company of Sachin Joshi of India.
The second season of the LPL is all set to kick off from July 30 and will be played till August 27 in Hambantota. However, with the recent development, it will not change the board’s plans for the tournament.
“It won’t affect the league because we will be announcing the two new owners soon. It is understood that the new entrants could be from India,” an IPG official said Cricbuzz.
Two news teams to be announced soon
LPL 2021 will have five teams even after the termination of two teams as two new franchise will be joining the tournament. Sri Lanka Cricket will be soon announcing the two new teams as soon as ICC vets franchise owners as part of their anti-corruption procedure.
“Accordingly, the Innovative Production Group FZE (IPG) has received multiple requests from many interested parties and in compliance with the contractual obligation of the IPG and Sri Lanka Cricket, for the said League, as well as in keeping with the requirement of the International Cricket Council (ICC), have submitted all KYC documents for approval to finalise the new set of owners for the said teams,” SLC said in a statement.