KEY POINTS:
Veteran batsman Marvan Atapattu last night made a withering attack on the Sri Lankan cricket selectors, branding them "muppets headed by a joker".
The former captain also hit out at the politics that were ruining Sri Lankan cricket as the tourists lost almost all hope of saving the
first test at the Gabba yesterday.
Atapattu's sensational post-stumps spray came after he was the only man to pass 50 as Sri Lanka were outgunned by Australia on a third straight day.
The 37-year-old opener batted for close to five hours, making 51 before Sri Lanka were rolled for 211 and forced to follow on 340 runs in arrears.
Atapattu, dismissed for 16 as his side lurched to 80 for two in the second innings, let his frustration out on the selection panel which initially overlooked the right-hander for the two-test tour.
He was added to the 17-man squad only when Sri Lanka's sports minister intervened and cemented a place in the test side with good form after Kumar Sangakarra was injured.
Atapattu has endured a running feud with chairman of selectors Ashanta de Mel this year and branded him a joker who held a personal grudge against him.
The pair have a history dating back to 2004-05 when the then-captain attacked the newly government-appointed de Mel by accusing him of blocking his attempts to blood new players.
"Sri Lankan cricket, I think at this moment in time, is not going the way, the direction, it should be going," he said.
"Especially with the muppets, basically, headed by a joker.
"If three guys are controlled by a joker you can do the wrong thing once, twice but not the third time. You can be called muppets then."
Atapattu felt his controversial call-up showed the four-man selection panel had dropped the ball.
"I don't give credit for the way they have handled things," he said.
"If they have handled things well I think we should have a good back-up [batsman].
"For some reason we don't have and at the age of 37 or 38 for people to come and play for Sri Lanka these become tough tours."
Atapattu denied there was friction in the Sri Lankan dressing room but had a shot at tour selector Ranjidh Madursinghe for feeding off the gravy train.
"We don't have problems inside the dressing room but people from outside are trying to create unpleasantness - certainly through the media No 1 and that can be ex-cricketers who have been giving statements," he said.
"People are trying to say it's not a happy dressing room but it is."
The Sri Lankan tour selectors also came under scrutiny for omitting firebrand paceman Lasith Malinga from the starting 11.
- AAP
