IND vs SL 2021: "A great degree of hatred against us" - Angelo Mathews, Dimuth Karunaratne hit back at Muralitharan’s allegations

Sri Lankan cricketers Angelo Mathews and Dimuth Karunaratne have hit back at spin legend Muttiah Muralitharan over his allegations against some senior players regarding an ongoing contract dispute with Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC).

In a rare and scathing attack on Hiru TV, Muralitharan accused four senior cricketers of dissenting over a 'small' pay cut to 'end the careers' of 37 other players involved in the dispute. In their written retort, Angelo Mathews and Dimuth Karunaratne called the statement ill-informed and fuelled by hatred.

“It is unfair and untrue that you state that the issue in the contracts was purely money. We feel that you were not properly informed of the correct sequence of events, or was possibly given wrong information. Possibly by parties who wish to create a rift between the players and the administration and create disharmony," read a letter by the two cricketers to Muralitharan, as reported by Island Cricket.

"You seemingly showed a great degree of dissatisfaction and hatred against the entire team and us, where we were referred to by name... Easily, such could have been done at meetings rather than on a Live TV program," it added.

India won the first ODI by 7 wickets and take 1-0 lead in the 3-match series.#SLvIND pic.twitter.com/NE6Y4ZfPe7

— Sri Lanka Cricket 🇱🇰 (@OfficialSLC) July 18, 2021

Several Sri Lankan cricketers had refused to sign a contract with SLC due to a pay dispute after agreeing to play against England on a tour contract. The players were said to have not signed the contracts over transparency issues. While some of them later cut a deal with the board, others have been left in the lurch as SLC soon withdrew its offer.

Why are Angelo Mathews and Dimuth Karunaratne not playing against India?

Angelo Mathews has informed Sri Lankan Cricket that he's considering of international retirement. He's unhappy with the environment in which he is expected to play.

— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) July 8, 2021

SLC had originally announced a 30-member squad for the ongoing India-Sri Lanka series, claiming that Angelo Mathews had pulled out citing 'personal reasons'. However, it was soon reported that he and Test captain Dimuth Karunaratne had been excluded from the tour contract for the six games.

An unhappy Mathews even reportedly wrote to the SLC administration stating that he is considering retirement. He is expected to make a formal announcement regarding the same in a few days.