Team Australia Donate Prize Money To Help Crisis-hit Sri Lanka

The Australian Cricket team donated 45,000 AUD from their earnings to Sri Lanka on account of the ongoing economic crisis prevailing in the nation. The Aussies decided to donate their prize money to the UNICEF organization after witnessing the suffering of the nation. The money will be used for providing food, water, education, healthcare, and other necessities.

The economic status worsened this year as the prices of daily commodities surged in the nation. The food prices have increased by 80 percent resulting in two-thirds of the population cutting down their food consumption. The crisis in Sri Lanka is deteriorating day by day, with the children attending school three days a week. There isn’t enough fuel for both teachers and students to travel. People have to wait in long queues for food and medicine. There is also a shortage of clean drinking water.

However, this isn’t the only instance when the Australians displayed their compassionate nature. Australian Test captain Pat Cummins had visited India to play for Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL. He witnessed the suffering of the Indians brought out by the deadly Covid-19 virus. He immediately donated $50,000 to Prime Minister Relief fund for the purchase of oxygen supplies. Together with UNICEF, Cummins also started an online campaign to gather money for the nation.

The CEO of UNICEF Australia, Tony Stuart said, “Last year Australian cricketers got behind India in its time of crisis during the peak of the COVID-19 Delta wave and we thank them for again giving generously to help Sri Lankans impacted by the current crisis. Australia has a strong bond with Sri Lanka that goes beyond the match days and this donation is gratefully received to support the long-term wellbeing of Sri Lanka’s families.”

The tour of Sri Lanka was Australia’s first trip since 2016. The visitors took the T20I series in their favor by 2-1. The hosts Sri Lanka then made a come-back winning the ODI series by 3-2. However, the two-match test series ended up with a 1-1.