Sri Lanka, April 29 -- Eventually and finally the Empire that was Sri Lanka Cricket came to its long-awaited end yesterday as incumbent president Shammi Silva and his executive committee decided to officially step down, making way for what many believe could be the beginning of a new era for the country's best-known passion and most marketable brand name.

Silva and his executive board had one final meeting on Tuesday as the clock ticked following President Anura Kumara Dissanayake's decision to overhaul cricket's administration that had swung from a once dignified entity to a repository of position, power and fiefdom.

The Daily Mirror exclusively reported on April 22 the move by President Dissanayake to change the old guard and replace ...