Sri Lanka Cricket apologizes to workers in uniform fiasco

Published Jul. 12, 2017 2:23 a.m. ET

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) Cricket authorities in Sri Lanka have apologized to stadium workers who were forced to walk away in their underwear at the completion of a game against Zimbabwe when local organizers took their uniforms back.

Dozens of villagers recruited on a temporary basis to work at Mahinda Rajapaksa Stadium in Hambantota for Monday's limited-overs international between Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe were seen walking away in their underclothes.

''It is unbelievable that officials in certain levels could even think in this manner,'' Sri Lanka Cricket President Thilanga Sumathipala said. ''I apologize to'' the workers.

''They come because of their love for cricket, to help us while watching the game,'' Sumathipala added. ''We pay them money and give them a uniform which they keep as a souvenir.''

He said will ask local organizers to apologize to the workers.