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Former Sri Lanka captain Ranjan Madugalle is a strong believer that a world class cricket team must not only have world class players, but also world class administrators.

``I think in that sense, when you work hand in hand, you have a quality product called 'a world class cricket team','' said Madugalle in an exclusive interview.

Madugalle, who is widely regarded as a much respected International Cricket Council (ICC) match referee was also of the view that no team can be successful without discipline.

``You must have discipline. If there is a breakdown and if there is no one to control, then you don't have a focussed approach. You go all over. We need to have top administrators supporting top players,'' said Madugalle.

The Sri Lanka cricket administration has lately been consumed by greater turmoil, racked by a succession of court orders and threats of violence. To say that none of these incidents which took place two months before the World Cup in England, had any effect on the cricketers, would be tantamount to not telling the truth.

With newly crowned world one-day champions Australia due for a one-day triangular series followed by a series of three Tests with Sri Lanka next month, Madugalle said the Cricket Board would need to have a clear objective as to what they want in terms of Test and one-day cricket. Whether it is a medium-term, long-term or an instant success plan to bring the interest back.

``If we are looking ahead for the next four years obviously we need to have changes going, but it should not be drastic, especially considering the fact that we are going to play Australia first up,'' said Madugalle.

``Australia is the toughest side to play. You must not expose too many youngsters straight away simply because not only would it be tough cricket wise, but it will be a tough battle mentally as well. You need youth along with experience, especially in Test cricket,'' he said.

Madugalle was of the view the present Sri Lanka team was on the decline and that it was time youth was introduced gradually to fill in the positions that would soon become vacant with time.

``It is obvious in the last four years we have played with the same lot of players and they've done an excellent job. But as in any phase of life there are ups and downs and there is a cycle. The cycle in this particular team is on a downward trend,'' said Madugalle.

``To prolong the effectiveness of Sri Lanka cricket you need to actually blood some young players, but also have experienced players to benefit them. It is also incumbent on the experienced players to pass on that benefit to the younger ones,'' he said.

Madugalle said that Sri Lanka did not have a well thought out game plan to defend the World Cup successfully in England.

``For a start, the composition of the side was totally wrong. It was exemplified by the fact that the three games we lost, we couldn't have replacements from the 15 because they were not the right players for the tournament. We didn't have adequate amount of fast bowlers to suit the conditions. It's no good saying we didn't have players because we knew the World Cup was coming three years ago and we should have looked for them.

``The other factor is we hadn't changed our game plan one inch from what we did in 1996 while other sides had mapped out ours to a T. We would have gone in with the belief with having the resources to turn it around, but unfortunately it didn't work out that way. There was something wrong in the planning aspect,'' said Madugalle.

No Sri Lankan is better qualified than Madugalle to pass judgment on the Australians. As match referee Madugalle has been associated closely with the players than anybody else. In the past two years, he has been involved in two Test series involving Australia - the 'Ashes' in England in 1997 and against the South Africans in Australia in 1997-98. And quite recently, the '99 World Cup where apart from the final between Australia and Pakistan at Lord's, Madugalle also officiated in the qualifying and Super Sixes matches.

``This Australian side has the confidence based on success. That is a very tough combination to beat. The other factor that helps the Aussies is that they are very well organised. They are a professional outfit and the players are a very determined lot proud to play for their country and proud to wear the baggy green cap,'' said Madugalle.

``When you have all these assets of skill and professionalism, combined by a determination to win and play for their country, it makes any side formidable. It however does not mean they are invincible. What one needs is to do what they do. That is plan properly.

``If Sri Lanka are to take a leaf from the Aussies that is what we should be looking at. But make no illusions, the Aussies are going to be a very formidable side,'' warned Madugalle.

What makes the Aussies different to other countries is that they pick different sides for different competitions, but they have a clear policy of picking specialists in both forms of the game. They had a clear objective three years ago and they made changes with one aim to win the 1999 World Cup, which they did.

Madugalle feels the Aussies have not been given the credit they deserve for winning the World Cup.

``People have been looking at why Pakistan lost than the brilliance of Australia on that day. They totally outplayed Pakistan. There was excellent fast bowling, brilliant spin bowling by Shane Warne and outstanding catches taken in the morning. While the final was not an exciting one, one must not take away the brilliant performance of the Aussies which contributed to that vast gap in the result,'' said Madugalle.

Australia beat Pakistan by eight wickets in the most one-sided final ever staged in the history of the World Cup.

To officiate as match referee in a World Cup final at Lord's was in a way the ultimate in this capacity for the 40-year-old Madugalle.

``It gave me great satisfaction and in a sense I was happy that my work has been recognised at a professional level. I would look at it in the same way as a player would remember a Test hundred or taking five wickets in an innings against the best of opponents. It is somewhat similar to having performed with the best,'' said Madugalle.

The striking feature for Madugalle in the World Cup was the teams that finally came through - Australia, Pakistan and South Africa were the ones that had specialist players in place. The sides that went with a few batsmen and some bits and pieces players soon found themselves out of the tournament.

``The game has evolved so much that the time has come to have specialists in place whether it be Test or one-day cricket. In a sense, the era of having this and that doesn't work anymore. You can do it for a short while but not for long periods. The World Cup was a good example of that,'' said Madugalle.

He said the next World Cup scheduled to be held in South Africa in 2003, wouldn't be any different.