Most Explosive Revelation of March Fixing in Cricket History, Sri Lanka Sold World Cup 2011 Final to India

Most Explosive Revelation of March Fixing in Cricket History, Sri Lanka Sold World Cup 2011 Final to India

ISLAMABAD - Sri Lanka "sold" the 2011 World Cup final to India, the country's former sports minister said on Thursday, reviving one of cricket's most explosive match-fixing controversies.

Mahindananda Aluthgamage, who was sports minister at the time, is the second senior figure to allege the final was fixed, after 1996 World Cup-winning skipper Arjuna Ranatunga.

"I tell you today that we sold the 2011 World Cup finals," Aluthgamage told Sirasa TV. "Even when I was sports minister I believed this."

Aluthgamage, sports minister from 2010 to 2015 and now state minister for renewable energy and power, said he "did not want to disclose" the plot at the time.

"In 2011, we were to win, but we sold the match. I feel I can talk about it now. I am not connecting players, but some sections were involved," he said.

Former Sri Lankan cricketers Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene took to Twitter, to respond to the shocking claims made by the ex-sports minister.