Ranatunga who captained Sri Lanka to win the cricket World Cup in 1996 said that this was time the country needed to encourage the team in spite of criticizing them for a single defeat.
"The team shouldn't be disrupted during the World Cup," Ranatunga said. "It's disappointing that people have to make such allegations after one defeat and what has really disappointed me is that a channel owned by the government is making this allegation," he has told Times of India.
An editor-in-chief of state owned newspaper accused two Sri Lankan players of match fixing through a state-owned TV channel.
Following Sri Lanka's 11-run loss to Pakistan in a Group 'A' match of the World Cup in Colombo last Saturday (Feb 26), state-owned TV ITN ran an analytical program implying that middle order batsmen Vice Captain Mahela Jayawardene and Thilan Samaraweera had 'deliberately' under-performed.
Jayawardena who scored a century against Canada in the opener was dismissed for two against Pakistan while Samaraweera scored only one.
Jayawardena has already stated that he would take legal action against the TV channel.
Ranatunga has called for an investigation into the ITN's claim to find out whether there is any force to prevent the Sri Lankan team from winning the World Cup.
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