A local drinking water supplier strongly defended its product Tuesday even as World Twenty20 organisers jettisoned their bottled water after several players went down with stomach flu. LAUGFS Aqua System said they had asked the International Cricket Council (ICC) for samples of suspect bottles of water, but got no immediate response except a statement that their product was off the table. “We have done our own tests and confirmed that there is nothing wrong with our water,” LAUGFS general manager Chaminda Wijesinghe told AFP. “We asked the ICC to give us water samples but we have got no response yet.” He said players and officials may also have consumed bottles from other suppliers rather than LAUGFS mineral water while staying at Sri Lankan hotels. “We don’t know what caused the problem but I can tell you it is not our water,” Wijesinghe said. “I am drinking it all the time.” Several players from New Zealand, Ireland, South Africa and Australia have reportedly been treated for stomach bugs since their arrival in Sri Lanka, with Kiwi Tim Southee even requiring hospital treatment for dehydration.
