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November 8, 2009
The impossible dream
Posted 1 week, 5 days ago in Sri Lankan cricket
Sri Lanka have made six tours to India over the last 27 years, played 14 Tests, and are yet to win one. As this current squad departs for India against the weight of history, SR Pathiravithana, in Sri Lanka's Sunday Times, evaluates the ammunition in possession if they are going to create history.
The Lankans embark on this tour with a lot at stake. Though we harp on the point that we have only a limited number of Test matches during the next few moons first Sri Lanka has to beat India on their own soil and do it convincingly to keep their position as the second in the ICC Test rankings. I do not know if they manage to draw the three Tests what it would be, but if they lose badly in Tests India may overtake the island nation. Then with the disparity of the quantum of Test cricket that the two teams play within the next calendar year Sri Lanka may never be able catch up with India. This also may put paid to Lanka’s aspirations of becoming the “Best Test playing Nation” in the foreseeable future.
October 4, 2009
Is Sangakkara doing too much?
Posted on 10/04/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
Following their Champions Trophy exit, Sri Lanka have a year ahead of one-day cricket before the World Cup in 2011. While their middle order looks settled, there are concerns about Nos. 1 to 3. Is Kumar Sangakkara taking on too much as wicketkeeper, captain and No. 3 batsman, asks SR Pathiravithana in Sri Lanka's Sunday Times.
Sangakkara on his own is one of the most organized and erudite cricketers in the entire cricketing world. More than once he also has been rated the best batsman in the accepted norm of Test cricket. Even in the ODI version of the game, his exploits though not the same, has been more good than bad. But, in his last eleven outings his contributions have been 36, 2, 37 not out, 39 and 16 against Pakistan, 18 vs New Zealand, 5 vs India, 33 vs India 54 vs South Africa, 1 vs England and 11 vs New Zealand. As captain this performance with the bat is not at all impressive. At the same time did his on-field tantrums cost Sri Lanka the ICC spirit of the game award this time?
September 13, 2009
Ranatunga - a hard act to follow
Posted on 09/13/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
In the Sunday Island, Madura Nandana writes that since the retirement of the gritty Arjuna Ranatunga, the Sri Lankan middle order hasn't looked as stable. The fighting spirit is strangely lacking.
The real cancer that has spread on players’ mind is the personal milestones of their careers, not the victory of the team, the country. It is apparent through the way they keep scoring and when their way of batting is compared to that of the old eras.
S.R Pathiravithana has similar views in the Sunday Times. Here he profiles another former middle-order batsman and team-mate of Ranatunga - Asanka Gurusinha. The left-hander wasn't among the stars in the Sri Lankan line-up in the 1990s, but his solidity at the top allowed Ranatunga and Aravinda de Silva to flourish. Thilan Samaraweera is one player in the current team who quite matches Gurusinha.
Before Gurusinha faded out of Sri Lanka cricket in the aftermath of their World Cup win he had a respectable average of 38.92 in Test Cricket and 28.27 in the limited overs version. Ironically Asanka was also moulded essentially a Test player by the pundits at that time. Nevertheless he always had his place reserved in the ODI side as the peers of that era knew the balance in the team was more important than blind experimentation.
September 10, 2009
'Almost famous' for Perera
Posted on 09/10/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
The first Sri Lankan to make it to the English system as an umpire, Ajith CS Perera was listed by Wisden in 1999 among eight people who made a difference to the game with contributions on various fronts. A cruel blow of fate though, ousted him from the cricketing system. But despite being paralysed waist down, he still tries to make a difference from the periphery. C Rajshekhar Rao has the story in Daily News & Analysis.
Cricinfo's Sriram Veera also caught up with Perera earlier this year. Read his Tour Diary here.
September 3, 2009
Reigniting the Samaraweera debate
Posted on 09/03/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
It's not Sri Lanka's fault that they don't get to play as much Test cricket as the other leading teams. However, if they have to maintain their No.2 ranking, they have to break their jinx in India later this year, writes Dileep Premachandran in the Guardian. He also reopens the debate on Thilan Samaraweera and whether he can be considered among the 'greats', be it in Sri Lanka or overall.
Waugh Junior may not go down as a "great" because of the manner in which he sometimes frittered away his considerable gifts, but his example should remind us not to use the word lightly. The best test, as it has always been, is to check how the player did against the finest team of his era. Sunil Gavaskar had 13 centuries against West Indies, Sachin Tendulkar has 10 against Australia. Brian Lara had nine. Inzamam-ul-Haq finished with one from 14 Tests. If he's not always mentioned in the same breath, you know why. Numbers in isolation, without analysis, mean nothing. Not every 36-24-36 bimbette can be a Paz Vega.
In the Daily News, Richard Dwight praises Samaraweera for his contributions over the years as a solid middle-order batsman.
September 1, 2009
A toast to the second best
Posted on 09/01/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
Sri Lanka, officially the world's second-best cricket team and home to some of the most creative and original players in the modern game, seem to have got the mix right in working towards the top spot in Tests. Suresh Menon celebrates their success in Dreamcricket.com.
When Mike Brearley wrote that a cricket team succeeds by the dint of differentiation, he meant that in a team of eleven, the bowlers, the batsmen, the wicketkeeper have distinctive roles, unlike say a team of rowers most of whom have identical roles.
But in Sri Lanka ‘differentiation’ takes on a new meaning – how different are their spinners from craftsmen from around the world!
August 30, 2009
Living at the top
Posted on 08/30/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
Sri Lanka have begun to excel in Tests very consistently, which has resulted in them rising to No. 2 in the rankings. While tracking the gradual ascent, SP Pathiravithana in his column in the Sunday Times, the Sri Lankan daily, believes this is the best achievement since winning the World Cup in 1996. Read Sidath Wettimuny's comment in the piece as well.
August 19, 2009
Vaas - Sri Lanka's unsung hero
Posted on 08/19/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
Chaminda Vaas may well be seen as one of the great under-rewarded players in cricket history, because he was so innocuous, writes Richard Dickinson in Cricket Web. He tended to do his job quietly and only rarely crept out of the shadow of the ubiquitous Muttiah Muralitharan. His ability to outsmart batsmen was wonderful to watch.
It is difficult to describe Vaas as "maddening", a description which has been applied to many bowlers far less inconsistent than he. But when he is possibly your favourite bowler ever, it was sometimes difficult to not get a little frustrated with the extremes. A bowler who was capable of destroying most of the ideals typically associated with seam bowling - that the most effective perpetrators of all have to propel from considerable height and\or at substantial pace - was easy to love, however. Vaas' bag of tricks were a joy to watch when they were working.
August 6, 2009
The legend that is Vaas
Posted on 08/06/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
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Vaas has to be admired as one good follower of his untiring and unnoticed predecessors
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There were many before Chaminda Vaas who excelled for Sri Lanka with the new ball. At what point does Vaas, who literally helped criss-cross two eras of Sri Lankan cricket – from underrated minnows to uncompromising world beaters — stand among the best fast bowlers Sri Lanka has produced? Revata S Silva finds out in the Island.
An unassuming and silent servant of the game, even after all his hard-earned achievements — over 350 Test and 400 ODI wickets, an impressive tally of 26 wickets in a 3-Test series against Brian Lara’s Windies in dusty local pitches that were made to suit Murali’s spin, his eight-for in an ODI and the much-hyped ‘first-3-ball hat-trick’ against Bangladesh in the 2003 World Cup —both fantastic world records — never made Vaas a toffee-nosed chap.
July 5, 2009
Is the warrior ready for curtains?
Posted on 07/05/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
Ignored for the Test series against Pakistan, Chaminda Vaas has now found himself having to defend comments from Ashantha de Mel, Sri Lanka's chief selector, that he has decided to quit the five-day game. Writing in the Sunday Times, SR Pathiravithana recalls the first time he saw Vaas and admires how that raw teenager morphed into Sri Lankan cricket's unsung hero.
At times I wonder without Vaas maturing along the line and forming that compatible duet would Muralitharan have been able to climb the heights that he has conquered today? It’s a known fact that for a bowler to succeed there should be another to block the flood gates at the other end.
May 31, 2009
Play it safe
Posted on 05/31/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
Politically, the situation in England is not disposed well towards the Sri Lankan cause. Can the Sri Lankan fans count on the safety of the players during their outing, or would some desperate bloke try to make them targets? SR Pathiravithana in the Sunday Times, the Sri Lankan daily, remembers quite a few untoward incidents surrounding the team in the years gone by.
May 10, 2009
Making junior cricket more effective
Posted on 05/10/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
In his column for Sri Lanka's Sunday Times, SR Pathiravithana offers a few of the pros and cons that modern Sri Lankan feeder points face. He suggests the authorities take a closer look at the present school cricket structure and suggests it may not be a bad idea to borrow a bit from Bollywood.
April 13, 2009
In Upul we trusted
Posted on 04/13/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
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Upul Chandana: Any captain's dream
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Whenever Upul Chandana came onto the cricketing field, be it as a batsman, bowler or fielder, there was a buzz of expectancy among the spectators that something positive would take place. In all three disciplines of the game he was simply what one would term as 'explosive'. Maxi Kariyawasam in the Daily Mirror, the Sri Lankan daily, traces Chandana's career.
A former Sri Lankan cricket captain described Upul as any captain's dream and stated that in his opinion Upul, other than for his batting or bowling, deserved a place in any national team purely on his fielding ability which saves up to 40-50 runs per match not to mention his match turning run-outs coupled with his sizzling airborne catches.
The demands for Upul Chandana’s talents are still in great demand other than in Sri Lanka which only shows the accuracy of that saying: 'A prophet goes unhonoured in his own country'.
April 12, 2009
Make selectors more accountable
Posted on 04/12/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
The selectors are a group of people who are generally the least appreciated. They are always wrong and will be part of a team that fights a losing battle. Roshan Abeysinghe in the Sunday Times believes that as much as the selector is a part of the problem, the decision-making body appointing them is also responsible. They need to ascertain whether the person selected has enough time on his side to do the job.
The problem for a selector is the fact that, they are fighting against time to balance their act. After all they are not full time professional selectors unlike, shall we say, the players, the umpires or even scorers for that matter. The problems or the challenges faced by selectors are tough ones and needs to be addressed sooner rather than later.
Since the appointments of Jeevan Kumaratunga and Gamini Lokuge as sports ministers of Sri Lanka, sports as a whole has suffered immensely. At the same time, people like Arjuna Ranatunga, who do have some sporting credentials, would take a little time in taking over the hot seat of sports. However, SR Pathiravithana, writing in the same paper, is of the opinion that a man with credentials along with other agendas will also not be in the healthiest situation for the cause of sports in this country.
Sri Lanka Cricket’s selection policies and selection committees have always been subject to constructive criticism, however, in the recent past their gaffes have been even more patent. Why else would a struggling Sri Lankan batting line-up be relieved of its most consistent performer, Jehan Mubarak, over the last year? Asanga Athukorala has more in the Daily Mirror.
April 5, 2009
Question marks from Sri Lanka
Posted on 04/05/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
The Oxford Dictionary says 'interim' means ‘intended to last for only a short time until a more permanent solution is found.’ Ironically, politicians in Sri Lanka have used this word to explain the formation of ad-hoc committees to run Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) whenever they find a ‘hard nut’ who is exploiting the situation and they have no control over it. SR Pathiravitana expresses his concerns in his column in the Sunday Times, the Sri Lankan daily.
...We are not concerned about anyone’s personal credentials or individual capabilities. What we are really concerned about is that by an unsuitable person occupying a hot seat at SLC what bad effects it could have on the general well being of cricket on either side of the boundary line and what repercussions it would bring to our national cricket in the long run.
In his column in the same paper, Roshan Abeysinghe believes that domestic cricket in Sri Lanka is not being taken seriously enough.
March 29, 2009
Can DS make a difference?
Posted on 03/29/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
As Sri Lanka Cricket embraces yet another change in administration, Rex Clementine profiles it's new chairman, Somachandra de Silva, the former legspinner. One of the bigger challenges awaiting de Silva will be tolerating interference from the country's outspoken sports minister, Gamini Lokuge. Read on in the Island.
With his appointment as the chief of Sri Lanka Cricket, D.S. automatically becomes a Director of the ICC, but it remains to be seen whether the world governing body would accept his appointment due to his links with the betting industry. On his own admission, he has been employed by betting magnate E.W. Balasuriya for a certain period.
March 15, 2009
Two new skippers at the same time, but leadership qualities....
Posted on 03/15/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
SR Pathiravithana, in his column for the Sunday Times, says that Kumar Sangakkara, the heir apparent to Mahela Jayawardene, has finally has got his chance to prove his credentials. As for the newly appointed interim committee chairman D Somachandra de Silva, says Pathiravithana, he bowled a googly well to drive onto the hot seat, but quite a few still wonder how effective he would be in his new role.
In the same newspaper M Shamil Amit reports on the final of the Inter School's Annual Big Match, where true Thomian grit prevailed at the SSC as the lads from Mt. Lavinia, led by Faahim Saleem, halted the Royal victory charge with a clever display of patience at the crease.
March 8, 2009
The bitter pill is on offer
Posted on 03/08/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
SR Pathiravithana, in his column for theSunday Times, says Sri Lanka were compounded by the blight of terrorism at home from their very infancy in Test cricket and 30 years on, they seem to have developed their own antidotes to it.
Sport in the entire region is in real peril at present and the only question that needs an answer is – “Where are we heading and how to get back on the road?” Right now that one voice that was a few years ago is being sung in different pitches and the result has become like the proverbial loosen the pack of sticks and you can break them one by one.
February 22, 2009
Heir apparent and taking cricket forward
Posted on 02/22/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
In 2008, Sri Lankan cricket was running backwards as if it was in a mighty hurry to fall over the cliff and then once a ‘may-be’ life line was thrown it has begun to float on like a rudderless ship, says SR Pathiravithana in Sri Lanka's Sunday Times.
February 21, 2009
Aravinda better than Tendulkar?
Posted on 02/21/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
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Aravinda, unlike Tendulkar, had to score runs for a minnow team
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If Sunil Gavaskar was a better batsman than Viv Richards because he mastered the fearsome West Indies bowlers who Richards never had to face, then by that logic Aravinda de Silva was better than Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara, writes Nirgunan Tiruchelvam in the Sri Lanka daily Island.
Lara and Tendulkar never had to wallow in the darkness of playing for a minnow. So, their aggregate runs will be higher than Aravinda. But, neither of them have won the World Cup with their own bat ... Like George Headley (the Black Bradman), Aravinda was burdened by the fact that he was a maestro in the weakest team. The Sri Lankan batting in those days was vulnerable and impulsive. Aravinda stood out. He was not just a gifted batsman, but he had the gall.
February 15, 2009
Can't bat, can't bowl... and can't field
Posted on 02/15/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
Watching Yuvraj Singh gesture to the Indian dressing room after a century in Sri Lanka last week, SR Pathiravithana and a colleague arrived at the notion that this was a mirror image of the cricketing woes of Sri Lanka in the present context. There is something radically wrong and that had to be fixed not with just paste, but some solid bonding concrete, feels Pathiravithana.
A few days later, after Ashantha de Mel, Sri Lanka's chief selector, mentioned that he had not seen anything amiss in local cricket other than some basic flaws, Pathiravithana and his friend revisited what they had noticed during that ODI match. Read on in the Sri Lankan daily, the Sunday Times.
February 2, 2009
'Ranatunga had problems with all' - Lokuge
Posted on 02/02/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
Gamini Lokuge, the Sri Lanka sports minister, has been involved in a lof of cricket controversies during his ongoing term, the most recent being a defamation suit filed by Arjuna Ranatunga, who he sacked as Sri Lanka Cricket's interim committee chief earlier this month. Lokuge spoke to Hindustan Times about problems with Ranatunga, sponsorship issues and releasing players for the IPL.
Arjuna Ranatunga, was having problems with the players, his fellow workers, the sponsors (Dilmah Tea spent $ two million during a three-year period and did not renew the contract) and even the media. We cannot run an association like that. So, I was forced to sack Ranatunga and dissolve the committee ... Now, I have given Duleep Mendis complete authority. Next month, we are planning to hold elections. We will set up a new Interim Committee. At the same time, I want to get the cabinet's approval to set up a trust that would take care of the financial activities.
February 1, 2009
Paws off cricket please
Posted on 02/01/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
Watching a media opportunity ahead of the five-ODI series between Sri Lanka and India, SR Pathiravithana noticed something he had never before seen in all his years covering cricket in his home country. Sitting with Sri Lanka's captain, coach and board chief executive were the sports minister and his secretary. A politician leading an international cricket exchange in Sri Lanka?
It doesn't gel with Pathiravithana, who in the Sri Lankan daily, the Sunday Times, says that it all looked a bit out of place.
January 30, 2009
Jayasuriya proves age is just a number
Posted on 01/30/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
In a dream that often recurs I find I am visiting familiar places, some I may have lived in, others merely travelled through, and people I knew still reside where they did, hang out under the same light pole, are doing the same things they used to. The only person that’s changed is me and I get the feeling I am a traveller looking at an unchanged past. I found similar thoughts coming back, though I was wide awake this time, while watching Sanath Jayasuriya bat on Wednesday, writes Harsha Bhogle in the Indian Express.
He is still crashing the ball past a bewildered fielder at point, surprising third man who might harbour thoughts of reaching the ball; still playing the pick up shot and depositing the ball into the stands at square leg; still charging back for the second like there is a brownie waiting for him. There is still a great simplicity of thought and action and often those are the humble building blocks of greatness. He is now the oldest man to score a one-day hundred and I suspect that, like Sergei Bubka, he will keep breaking his own record.
January 25, 2009
The mental aspects of Lankan cricket
Posted on 01/25/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
Going by their performance in Pakistan, Sri Lanka proved that what they lack is not a shortage of class, but a little bit of dip in their confidence – or as Asoka de Silva, the former Test cricketer-turned-umpire calls it – “a slight mental block”. SR Pathiravithana in the Sri Lankan daily, the Sunday Times, has more.
January 11, 2009
Mahela's unsung achievement
Posted on 01/11/2009 in Sri Lankan cricket
In celebrating Mahela Jayawardene's 100th Test, Rex Clementine pays tribute to Sri Lanka's captain in the Sunday Island, listing his achievements and pitfalls in a fulfilling 11-year Test career.
He has also had complete control of things and has stipulated what is needed of a Sri Lankan cricketer as you time and again witness exemplary behavior by local cricketers on the field. You hardly remember when a Sri Lankan was called up to the Match Referee’s room for excessive appealing, showing dissent or for any other misdemeanor and the end result has been the country winning back to back Spirit of Cricket Awards.
There may be slight hiccups but, what is most encouraging is that Sri Lanka has graduated into a very respectable Test playing force. Without being much noticed they have achieved a position that the others are still trying to make a reality. S.R. Pathiravitana in the Lankan daily, the Sunday Times, looks back at the ascendancy in the longer duration of the game.
Sri Lanka came to fame in the World arena by winning the Cricket World Cup in 1996 and thus became the new kids in the blocks in the world arena, but, still they did not look at them as a serious Test playing nation. Nevertheless they gradually upgraded their game so that they reached the top four in Test recognition and have managed to stay there for more than two years now.
Like most of the Indian sub-continent teams Sri Lanka is also another side that nurtures its players for a long time and expectedly it has paid its own dividends for its faithfulness.
In the Sunday Observer, Elmo Rodrigopulle feels Tillakaratne Dilshan's confidence and consistency will only improve if the selectors give him continuity in all forms of the game.
December 21, 2008
Lying low in Lanka
Posted on 12/21/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) hit a new low when they came across some empty bins for the bids of annual sponsors which included Dilmah, which has almost become a household name in the country, while another sponsor believed this was a good opportunity to exploit the SLC and make them reconsider a bid for their merchandise. SR Pathiravithana, in the Sri Lankan daily, the Sunday Times takes a look at how the global crunch has hit Sri Lankan cricket, reflecting on the board's ironic attitude and how it has contributed towards the destabilization of the sport in country as well.
December 7, 2008
Zimbabwe lesson or Zimbabwe mess?
Posted on 12/07/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
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Lone Ranger: Kumar Sangakkara
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In his column in the Sunday Times, SR Pathiravithana says Sri Lanka shone like a beacon in world cricket until the last fortnight. A 5-0 ODI sweep of lowly Zimbabwe recently did little for Sri Lanka, rather it exposed how horribly wrong some experiments went, says the writer. Neither Upul Tharanga nor Mahela Udawatte batted with a semblance of any confidence, Mahela Jayawardene's form was deplorable, Kumar Sangakkara batted under sever pressure, and Chamara Kapugedera failed to live up to expectations once again.
In the same paper, Ranil Abeynaike says that from a relaxing, noble sport, cricket has reached a stage when it’s fully involved professionally, wrapped in political and thriving financially. Little wonder then, that Sachin Tendulkar has managed to cross 12,000 Test runs, turning a dream into reality.
Sri Lanka Cricket is already in a mess and saddled with a load of problems leading to disunity amongst its members following the appointment of former captain Arjuna Ranatunga as interim committee chairman. Ashantha de Mel's suspension from the post of Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) chairman is further proof that cricketers cannot be good administrators. Sa'adi Thawfeeq has more in the Nation on Sunday.
It is seldom that outstanding cricketers like Ranatunga and De Mel had enough time on their hands to become erudite individuals because their cricketing talents exceeded all of them. Therefore whatever employment they got soon after leaving school was purely because of their cricketing background and to a great extent had nothing to do with their academic qualifications, if any.
November 30, 2008
No small matter this
Posted on 11/30/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
At a time when the general cricket machine is in a slow sinking quagmire, the struggle faced by junior cricket in Sri Lanka keeps getting worse. Former national coach Jayantha Seneviratne tells SR Pathiravithana in the Sunday Times, that the commercial exploitation of cricket at the junior level as the biggest bane that has hit the sport in this island.
There are many uncertain avenues that a young cricketer has to travel in this present trend. In this present system, from their younger days, they are trained to play limited overs cricket and the focus is win at any cost. As a result negative trends begin to creep in, he believes.
'For instance a lot of young players now try to play the slash instead of the drive. When they play the slash they are not in complete control over their shot. They play it because they have seen Sanath Jayasuriya playing that stroke and scoring runs. But, the irony is that Sanath Jayasuriya is a rare gifted player and every young cricketer cannot become another Jayasuriya.'
November 8, 2008
Why Ranatunga should remain SL board president
Posted on 11/08/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
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Arjuna Ranatunga isn't looking to further any business or political ambitions
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Former captain Arjuna Rantaunga has just completed a turbulent first year as the president of the Sri Lankan board. Nirgunan Tiruchelvam writes in the Island that while Ranatunga hasn't done the best of jobs, he deserves to remain in the post.
The finance are in a shambles, with no takers for the TV rights. The players resent him. His former prodigies Jayasuriya and Muralitharan are openly defying their mentor. Bridges have been burnt with the Indian board
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(but) Arjuna is the first board president, who has taken the post purely for cricket’s sake. Unlike others who took to further their business and political ambitions, Ranatunga is the first full-time Board President. He burns the midnight oil, toiling 12 hours a day.
October 19, 2008
Captain Ranatunga v chairman Ranatunga
Posted on 10/19/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
When Arjuna Ranatunga took over as Sri Lanka's captain, the consensus was that finally the game had got the man it wanted. So expectations ran high when he was appointed as the chairman of Sri Lanka's interim committee earlier this year. But these expectations have exploded between then and now, writes Elmo Rodrigopulle in Sri Lanka's Sunday Observer.
... the game and the administrations has been travelling the wrong way. True as captain he could have dictated terms on the field and had his way. But somebody should have told him that playing is one thing and administration is another. Going down memory lane, it would not be wrong to think that no other IC chairman, became so unpopular and had so much adverse publicity tossed his way as has been done on the former captain.
Triumph in the Canadian chill
Posted on 10/19/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
In the Sunday Times, Ranil Abeynaike reviews Sri Lanka's campaign in the recent four-nation Twenty20 tournament in Canada. Sri Lanka beat Pakistan in the final of the tournament, which also included Zimbabwe and Canada.
October 5, 2008
Cricket administration lacks professionalism
Posted on 10/05/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
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How far as Sri Lankan cricket administration come since 1996?
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Sa'adi Thawfeeq, writing in Sri Lanka's Nation, says that the country's cricket administration over the past decade has been riddled with petty politics and a lack of professionalism. That, in turn, has left it a laughing stock in the eyes of the cricket world.
Becoming World Cup champions in 1996 brought about a new dimension to Sri Lanka cricket administration which has failed to change with the times and streamline itself in a professional way. As a result they have been making the same mistakes over and over again and to say the least, been rather amateurish in handling certain issues.
Take for instance the problem that cropped up with regard to the IPL and the tour of England next year where for some weeks there was a tussle between the IPL contracted players and the current administration headed by former captain Arjuna Ranatunga over who should play where as both series clashed with each other.
In the Sunday Times, SR Pathiravithana writes that ironically in Sri Lanka the spirit of the game starts and ends well within its cricket first XV.
They form the nucleus of our international cricket and play the game forgetting whatever their personal differences are with only one goal in mind. It is to ‘bring honour and glory’ to their mother land. However the rest of the bunch that is involved with the cricket machinery should follow the Emu and hide their heads in shame.
Since of late whatever happens in Sri Lankan where cricket is concerned ends up with controversy and some one should “Hey! Your Sunday is longer than your Monday”.
The Sunday Times also has an interesting write-up on Seekkuge Prasanna, a budding legspinner and useful batsman tipped for greater stuff. Prasanna's family lost all they had in the tragic tsunami of 2004, and the youngster has worked hard to support then in whatever way he can. He has worked with the Army coach who also oversaw Ajantha Mendis. Harry Jayachandra caught up with Prasanna.
September 28, 2008
Old fiddles still play the tune
Posted on 09/28/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
In Sri Lanka's Sunday Times, Ranil Abeynaike looks at the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 and IPL and surmises that both were tournaments for youth. He then compares this to Sri Lanka's latest Twenty20 squad, where four players are under the age of 25 and four are beyond 30. Sri Lanka has always been conservative with their selections, writes Abeynaike, preferring to stick with known and proven players for the longer and shorter versions of the game.
In the same Sunday publication, SR Pathiravithana compares "our lovely little game of cricket" to what happened when king Midas was granted his wish and everything that he touched turned to gold.
A few moons back when Twenty20 cricket hit the billboards many a cricket lover did not take it seriously as it was originally meant as a vehicle to spread the game among the non-cricketing countries. It was an attempt to give the non-cricketers a cricketing version akin to their loveable baseball and Kentucky Fried Chicken.
However down the line there was a bright little guy who felt that this virus also could be spread around the conventional cricketing world. He knew any surface sports lover would love something that could and would end no sooner than it begins and at the same time the business world that is full of TV cameras would grab it with both arms.
September 21, 2008
We are down the wrong lane
Posted on 09/21/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
In Sri Lanka's Sunday Times, S R Pathiravithana looks at Sri Lanka's build-up to the 2011 World Cup and, speaking to an unnamed former player, wonders if the sport in the country will suffer as a result of the latest developments home and away.
In the same newspaper, Ranil Abeynaike looks at the changing phases of cricket. The 1975 World Cup, he feels, changed the face of cricket and addressing a few other significant moments, he is amazed how matters have changed since 1828, when round-arm bowling was permitted.
September 14, 2008
A Test drive for Sri Lanka
Posted on 09/14/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
It's a predicament for Sri Lanka with the team not playing Test cricket until May 2009 in England. Ranil Abeynaike in Sri Lanka's Sunday Times believes, while some other countries have their platters full all the time, the meagre Test match calendar is hindering Sri Lanka's climb up the ladder.
England and Australia have the best arrangements. They have over the years built summer and winter major sporting calendar that is there to stay. England play all their home test games and ODI’s during the period May to early September. They do not tour during this period. The Australians conduct their cricket between November and early March.
September 3, 2008
Tweak spot
Posted on 09/03/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
Ajantha Mendis, the latest spin phenomenon gripping the cricketing world, in an interview to Faisal Shariff of Cricketnirvana.com confesses the toughest Indian batsman he bowled to during the recently-concluded Sri Lanka v India series, was Virender Sehwag.
There was not much of a difference in bowling to most of the Indian batsmen. Their style was similar. But Virender Sehwag was the toughest to bowl to without doubt.
August 24, 2008
Top heavy with a thin middle
Posted on 08/24/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
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Sri Lanka are wasting Kumar Sangakkara's talent by making him open in ODIs
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Sri Lanka's best batsmen bat at Nos 1, 2 and 3 in the one-day side and if they do depart early, the domino theory is put into effect, writes SR Pathiravithana in the Colombo-based Sunday Times.
... one must not forget opener Mahela Udawatte, who the ‘A’ coach Chandika Haturusinghe has identified as a batsman who has good ‘eye-ball co-ordination’. In his last two ODI innings, Udawatte has two impressive scores of 73 and 67.
The other day while having a chat with a selection insider he pointed out, that right now, Sri Lanka national team is batting on a very uncertain wicket. Don’t we feel the weight? Don’t we feel that we are too top heavy with a very thin middle? He was pondering about the wisdom of opening batting with Kumar Sangakkara. Since, he began to open batting in the West Indies he has scores of 23,28 and 1 (in the West Indies) 101,0,112 and 121 of which two were against Bangladesh and one against Pakistan during the Asia Cup. But, since then his contributions at the top has been 7,4,19 and 2 – all against India. His grouse was that at present Sri Lanka is wasting the incomparable talent of Sangakkara by opening the innings with him.
August 12, 2008
Leading by impulse
Posted on 08/12/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
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Mahela Jayawardene is the only Sri Lankan captain with a win record of over 50% in Tests
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Lokendra Pratap Sahi interviews Mahela Jayawardene, the Sri Lankan captain, in the Telegraph, where he reveals that not giving Marvan Atapattu a game in the World Cup in 2007 was perhaps his "toughest decision". Couple of excerpts from the interview -
On his captaincy:
I’m very impulsive... One can plan a lot of things, but it all gets down to how the bowlers bowl and how well the batters have been able to adjust to the conditions... Strategy, I think, has to be flexible with a Plan B and a Plan C ready all the time... I do go with my instincts and if I feel that something could work, I give it a shot... When I get back to the hotel, I shouldn’t be thinking that I ought to have tried what I’d thought could work.
On handling pressure:
As a team, we do a lot of activities away from cricket... In the last World Cup, for example, we even had a quiz competition which continued throughout the tournament. Eventually, my team won, beating Kumar Sangakkara’s by a few points... The team, by the way, has a social committee... I try and involve myself in things away from cricket... Could be a round of golf or just going out... (After a pause) I’m not a big reader, but my wife (Christina) reads a lot and forces me to read too.
August 10, 2008
Dinesh Chandimal: Challenging the destiny
Posted on 08/10/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
Dinesh Chandimal, Sri Lanka's under-19 vice-captain, had to overcome the challenges posed by the tsunami and also make a transition from bowling to wicketkeeping to develop as a cricketer.Reemus Fernando charts Chandimal's progress in the Island.
July 31, 2008
Let's enjoy the mystery man while we can
Posted on 07/31/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
Michael Atherton in the Times hopes the Ajantha Mendis' mystery spin remains unravelled, despite the presence of numerous slow-motion replays.
Every time Mendis fools a batsman - which is often - he does so with the ghosts of Bosanquet, Iverson, Gleeson and Ramadhin looking on proudly. Are there common themes that bind these strange creatures together? Mystery is an obvious prerequisite.
July 30, 2008
Murali the philanthropist
Posted on 07/30/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
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Muttiah Muralitharan: Bringing a smile to faces with his bowling ... and charity work
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As destructive as he is on the field, hurling the ball with untiring menace, off the field Muttiah Muralitharan is a creative force doing good deeds that go well above the call of duty, writes Anand Vasu in the Hindustan Times.
While sportsmen and celebrities of all kind usually turn to philanthropy now and then, it's hard to find someone who has done so much, personally, for a cause. To see for yourself you have to take a 22-kilometre drive from Galle, towards Colombo to the village of Seenigama, one of the worst affected by the 2004 tsunami. Over there you will find the Foundation of Goodness, an organisation that has touched the lives of people from 25 villages.
Also read an interview with Murali about the Foundation of Goodness.
I did an advertising campaign with a cement company, and the deal was that instead of paying me, they would provide cement worth $100,000 because cement was then badly needed.
Richard Dwight, though, feels that Murali missed out on a exemplary gesture at the SSC. Read more in the Daily News.
The man who made Matara famous
Posted on 07/30/2008 in India in Sri Lanka 2008
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The Matara Marauder
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Sandeep Dwivedi passes by Matara, famous for being the town Sanath Jayasuriya hails from, and he can't resist visiting the Sri Lankan batsman's home. More in the Indian Express.
Mother Breeda recalls her Tsunami experience to drive home the point. “I was in the market buying vegetables that day when the place got suddenly flooded. Somehow I got hold of a tree but I was losing my grip. Then I shouted, ‘I am Jayasuriya’s mother’, and soon I was rescued,” she says, with a smile on her face even as she narrates the harrowing experience of getting unconscious and being taken to a hospital in Colombo.
Dwivedi also speaks to Sri Lanka A coach Chandika Hathurusinghe on the transformation of Thilan Samaraweera, whose century perhaps went unnoticed at the SSC.
The man who changed Samarweera’s approach to the game happens to be the ‘A’ team coach, Chandika Hathurusinghe, who explains the turnaround. “Once when Samaraweera was dropped, I had asked the then Sri Lankan coach, Tom Moody, about what he could do to make a comeback. He had said Samaraweera needed to improve his strike rate,” said Hathurusinghe.
So before the start of the season, a target was set for the batsman. “Previously his strike rate was in the 30s and I asked him to get to about 60,” recalled the Lanka ‘A’ coach. Things changed as Samaraweera changed gears and more importantly retained his consistency. A call to the West Indies saw him continue his form.
July 22, 2008
Not a product of scientific coaching
Posted on 07/22/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
Ajantha Mendis should be careful in not getting too predictable with his variations, writes Makarand Waingankar in the Hindu. He adds that freak bowlers like Mendis should be prepared to get thrashed a bit early on, especially against effective players of spin like the Indians.
Mendis and his captain Jayawardene will have a set plan against the Indians. Since Mendis is an attacking bowler, he tends to try out all the deliveries he possesses every over. At the international level, especially against top Indian batsmen, keeping the secrets guarded will be very difficult. They will watch him more at the non-striker’s end so that they should be comfortable at the striker’s end.
July 20, 2008
Systematically scouting the unorthodox
Posted on 07/20/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
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Ajantha Mendis is surely not the last of unorthodox cricketers Sri Lanka is going to produce
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Lasith Malinga and Ajantha Mendis may have awed the world with their unconventional styles, but there are more in the pipeline from Sri Lanka, Sandeep Dwivedi finds out in the Indian Express.
Jerome [Jayaratne] is the current head of the system that has produced unconventional cricketers such as Muttiah Muralitharan, Sanath Jayasuriya, Lasith Malinga and now Ajantha Mendis. And, as one takes a look at the display window of the academy, one finds that the supply-line isn’t going to stop any time soon. A Malinga lookalike, a leggie who delivers the ball from an awkward angle, and a pacer who till yesterday was a star on the tennis-ball circuit, are a few of the ‘works in progress’.
A lot of effort, though, goes in to unearth that ‘different’ bowler.
The Sri Lankan board has about 700 active coaches spread across the country, who are all linked to the national academy. The complex network explains how tough it would be for a talented cricketer to go unnoticed. Head coach Jayaratne has national coach Trevor Bayliss and the Lanka A coach under him, along with the national pace and spin coaches and their assistants.
There is a Coaching Education Department with three members, looking after batsmen, pacers and spinners, who are under-studies of the national pace and spin coaches. The coaches from the ‘education department’ travel to provinces — comprising of three to four districts — on regular scouting trips. Helping them are coaches with provinces, districts and schools who have a ready data of players from their region. With such a labyrinth spread over the small island, where virtually all districts or villages are wired, the red lights frequently flicker at the academy in Colombo when an unusual talent is spotted. With the coaches having a common agenda, uniformity in the system is maintained.
The secret of Mendis' dramatic success, is not merely his variety, but his pin-point accuracy, says team-mate Kumar Sangakkara in the Sunday Telegraph.
Indeed, while people talk of his variations, his mystery deliveries, his amazingly complicated method of delivery, when I keep to him I see only simplicity. I see a someone adhering to the age-old basics of bowling. Up until the point of delivery, when his fingers rub their magic, his action is perfectly orthodox. This gives him a strong foundation.
Referring to Cricinfo's Round Table, Tony Becca in the Jamaica Gleaner analyses the role of coaching in the development of great players.
July 19, 2008
Mendis fortunate to be in mature hands
Posted on 07/19/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
Peter Roebuck reserves special praise for the seniors in the Sri Lankan team for their careful handling of Ajantha Mendis in the Hindu.
Far from rushing him along or trying to change him or claiming all the glory, his coach at Army club was wise to leave him to his own devices, contenting himself with filming his action and showing him the footage whenever things went wrong. The best coaches are not dictators but mirrors. As the months passed, Mendis added other balls to his off-break and leg-break. Nowadays he has numerous deliveries in his repertoire, all of them under control.
Apparently, he sends down most of them every over. Mendis’s next stroke of fortune was that the national team had fallen into thoughtful and mature hands. A lesser leader than Mahela Jayawardene, a lesser lieutenant than Kumar Sangakkara, might have insisted on including the youngster in the team to tour Australia last season.
July 4, 2008
Age not a factor for Jayasuriya
Posted on 07/04/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
Harsha Bhogle, in his column in the Indian Express, praises Sanath Jayasuriya for continuing to play the game despite being 39 years old.
It’s funny how your view of the world changes once you stop playing. But Jayasuriya hasn’t stopped playing even though there are some in his country who believe he should. Instead, he is still taking attacks apart and thrilling his legion of admirers. One of them is writing this article.
He must enjoy it. That must seem a strange statement because surely everyone enjoys playing cricket. Not quite true. Often time dulls the instinct, selectors and administrators take the fun away, children tug at the heart, training becomes a chore, injuries seem to hurt a bit more and muscles take longer to recover. It is a battle most people lose by the time they are 39. And while Jayasuriya has had a few arrows aimed at him, he is still up and around, taking on young kids, sometimes closer to half his age. Yes, he must enjoy it.
June 17, 2008
The Sri Lankan mystery spinner
Posted on 06/17/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
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All eyes are on Ajantha Mendis
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| Sandeep Dwivedi of the Indian Express catches up with a few Sri Lanka cricketers in Mumbai, and gets them to talk about their latest spin sensation, Ajantha Mendis.
In just over a week, Mendis will be in Pakistan for the Asia Cup playing international cricket for the first time in the sub-continent, though he did turn out in one game for the Kolkata Knight Riders against Kings XI Punjab after being signed at a late stage for the IPL. With the new ‘freak show’ coming soon to world cricket’s epicentre, it isn’t tough to guess where the spotlight is headed.
Ask [Mahela] Jayawardene about Mendis and he gets a twinkle in his eye that is the prerogative of someone hiding an ace up his sleeve. “It’s really exciting to have a spinner like him in the squad. In Sri Lanka, the anticipation is similar to the one that was during Murali’s [Muttiah Muralitharan’s] early days,” he says. And that’s saying a lot since the comparison happens to be with the highest wicket-taker in the world.
The man at the helm of affairs when Murali was taking his first step in international cricket, Arjuna Ranatunga, has one request that could ensure Mendis’s initiation in international cricket is smooth. “We never had a problem replacing our pacers but we had a tough time getting quality spinners. Finally, we have Mendis. Though it doesn’t seem like Murali will retire soon, it will be good if he sticks around for at least two years. It will be great if Murali is around to guide Mendis.”
March 9, 2008
When flags become rags
Posted on 03/09/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
In Sri Lanka's Daily Mirror Neil Wijeratne gets nostalgic on the fixtures between St Josephs and St Peters, one of the traditional schools cricket rivalries in Sri Lanka.
Wijeratne waxes eloquent while recalling a time of grandeur, of charismatic school captains, blue and white flags blowing in the breeze, and a most interesting thriller in 1962.
Once upon a time, it all began near the College gate when we were about to enter the school premises. As usual there were pavement hawkers selling American comic books, toffees and lollypops; hot milk tea, pineapple and mangoes and many more things. But on this particular day, I noticed something different. There was a man selling small “Blue and White” flags. It attracted me. After all it’s our college colours and our college flag. Like many other college boys, I too wanted to own one of those flags. I begged with Marthinamma, the old maid who accompanied me to school, carrying my suitcase filled with school books in one hand and a huge lunch container on the other. Instantly she refused my request. But I was keen to possess a small, lovely “Blue and White” flag and to wave it shouting aloud “Come on Joes”. A lengthy pleading with Marthinamma, resulted in having a small “Blue and white” flag in my hand.
Do read on ....
Meanwhile, the Sunday Times carries a tale of bailas, verses and boundary-line heroes who ungrudgingly served the cause of Royal Cricket.
February 14, 2008
The name game
Posted on 02/14/2008 in Sri Lankan cricket
There are 480 letters, 59 words, 15 members and one team, writes GS Vivek in the Indian Express. With an average of 32 letters per name, this team is the longest named international cricket team, which contains 23 of the 26 alphabets in the English dictionary except q, x and z.
Uda Walawwe Mahim Bandaralage Chanaka Asanka Welegedera is the cricketer with the longest initials in world cricket and has one more than existing record holder Warnakulasuriya Patabendige Ushantha Joseph Chaminda Vaas.
December 24, 2007
Harrovian cricketers return to tsunami scene
Posted on 12/24/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
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Julian Ayer’s widow, Harriet, and her son, Spencer Crawley, at the ground in Galle
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| A cricket tour by Harrow School ended in tragedy when they were caught up in the 2004 tsunami, and Julian Ayers, one of the players’ fathers, was among those who died. As a result, the Harrow Tsunami Relief Fund raised more than £475,000, a large part of which was spent rebuilding a local school, Vidyaloka College. The Daily Telegraph reports on how some of that side returned to Galle for the Test.
"It was a very emotional moment. After all that destruction and loss of life, to see England as the first Test team to play on the ground really brought a lump to my throat."
Click here for details on the Harrow Tsunami Relief Fund
December 17, 2007
Sri Lanka's Burgher king
Posted on 12/17/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
Stepping into Sanath Jayasuriya's shoes is a big ask for any man but Michael Vandort has filled the breach with minimum fuss, writes Aravinda de Silva in the London-based Observer.
At 6ft 5in, he is by far the tallest batsman to play for Sri Lanka and he is going to have to find a way to play with authority on the back foot, for, although the game has become much more front-foot friendly compared to 10 years ago, let alone 20, there will be times he is going to come up against Brett Lee, Shoaib Akhtar and Shane Bond and he's not going to want to be a liability to the team. But I back him to succeed. He has always been a fighter.
Mike Selvey, writing in the Guardian, talks of the importance of the Test match at Galle.
The Daily Telegraph's Simon Hughes travels with the England cricketers on their Tsunami trip, talking about how it put cricket in perspective.
December 15, 2007
Galle faces washout
Posted on 12/15/2007 in English cricket
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Geoff Boycott has called for the inclusion of Graeme Swann
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It won't take much, Derek Pringle tells us in today's Telegraph, for the Galle Test to be washed out as heavy and prolonged rains are forecast.
So it is a huge shame that torrential rain and a squabble over building regulations threaten to ruin the Galle Test, due to start on Tuesday, which many feel could provide symbolic closure for a region so badly afflicted on that fateful Boxing Day three years ago.
Tropical rain tends to be as heavy as the tropical sun is hot, though when one follows the other, a balance is struck. Not so yesterday morning in Galle, where a prolonged downpour, but no sun, left the outer third of the outfield several inches under water. Mobile pumps had reduced this by late afternoon, but with more rain forecast, it would not take much for the opening day to be abandoned, which would be a huge blow to England's chances of levelling the series.
In the same paper Geoff Boycott demands Graeme Swann is given his chance at the expense of Ravi Bopara ("a nice lad").
Meanwhile, Alastair Cook rates his 81 in the first innings at Colombo as one of his "most satisfying".
The Nice Kandyman
Posted on 12/15/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
It’s in the eyes. Muttiah Muralitharan may go on to take a thousand Test wickets, but even more special is his gift of turning adversity into generosity of spirit, writes Anand Vasu in the Tehelka Magazine.
Start instead at the village of Kundasale, not far from the hill city of Kandy. It was here that our young Tamil boy went through the formative years that would make him the man he is. The year is 1983 and the civil war between the Tamils and the Sinhalese is at its height. Murali, only 11, was witness to his father Muttiah’s flourishing biscuit factory being burnt down by Sinhalese mobs. Muttiah was the last man out, and emerging from the flames was attacked by men wielding machetes and badly injured. Murali and his family were herded into the cellar of a Muslim friend’s house, and there they sheltered as the mob waited outside, knowing that Tamils were being protected in the house. But the Muslims refused to yield and eventually the mob grew tired of waiting and moved on to find other victims.
... But Muttiah, when confronted with a life in tatters, seeing all he built laid to waste, did not walk away. Instead, with the help of his brother, Murali’s uncle, the biscuit factory was rebuilt and now employs more than 300 people from all communities.
December 13, 2007
Use the force, Mahela
Posted on 12/13/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
Stephen Brenkley, in his and Angus Fraser's enjoyable tour diary blog at The Independent, tells us of the nicknames the photographers have given to some of the Sri Lanka players.
To while away their time between balls and overs a couple of them have dreamt up a new game: casting the Sri Lankan team as Star Wars figures.
Bizarre certainly, but astonishingly gripping. Since Sri Lanka are a team of good guys any and all comparisons to Darth Vadar have been unnecessary as well as prohibited. Princess Leia is sadly but obviously not represented either.
But here is the rest of the cast list: Luke Skywalker - Mahela Jayawardene; Han Solo - Kumar Sangakkara; Yoda - Muttiah Muralitharan; Obi-Wan Kenobi - Sanath Jayasuriya; Chewbacce - Dilhara Fernando; C-3PO - Michael Vandort; R2-D2 - Chamira Silva. The snappers would welcome other suggestions and are now working on an appropriate movie vehicle for the England team.
December 6, 2007
Excuse me Murali, how do you spell your name?
Posted on 12/06/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
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Muttiah Muralitharan may have put many batsmen in a spin en route to his world record wickets tally, but in the late 80s it was the spelling of his name that caused confusion
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| Dinesh Weerawansa of the Daily News, the Colombo-based daily, writes about how he cycled all the way to a school ground meet a young Muttiah Muralitharan, to get a clarification on how his name was spelt.
It was a less important inter-school game between Maris Stella College, Negombo and St.Anthony’s College, Katugastota. But I had a person to meet, of course without an appointment. He was a young cricketer who was a member of that St. Anthony’s side.
Having joined the ‘Daily News’ as a cub reporter, I was in-charge of school cricket since 1987.
I occupied the entire inner back page of Tuesday’s paper with my school cricket review, which was sub editored by my dear friend, the late Marianne Decker.
There was an Antonian cricketer who had been going great guns but even the sports reporters did not know the exact way he spells his name. The intention of my ride to Katunayake was to meet the emerging schoolboy cricketer and find how he spells his name and pronounces it.
His first name was spelt it different ways in different newspapers - Some called him Muttiya, Muttiyah, Muttiah, Muttiyaa or Mutiaya. When it came to his surname, it was still worse - Muralidharan, Muralidharam, Murralitharan, Muralitharan or even Muralitharam. On that particular evening after the match, I met this young schoolboy to find out the correct spelling.
Ever since, I used that correct spelling in all my school cricket write-ups. It was this young schoolboy who has now become a household name in Test cricket.
December 5, 2007
A fellow offspinner applauds Murali
Posted on 12/05/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
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Muttiah Muralitharan celebrates his 709th Test wicket to become the world-record holder
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| Harbhajan Singh, the India offspinner, thinks Muttiah Muralitharan should be appreciated for his genius instead of being questioned over his action, a situation he himself is familiar with. His article in the Guardian has more.
Murali has had to fight allegations about his action more than a few times and each time he has come out clean and come out on top on the field again. I've also had to go through the tunnel of suspicion and have come out unscathed, and even if the sceptics persist, the cameras are not lying. It takes a lot to come out and resume the fight and Murali, ever a fighter, came out on top whenever he was sent to the labs.
One important thing in his favour was the Sri Lankan cricket board's policy of backing him and believing he was right. Murali repaid that faith by winning his country so many matches and you've got to give credit to a guy who's taken so many wickets. Let him play, let us enjoy watching this legend rather than constantly carping about nothing. Just salute him.
December 3, 2007
In praise of Murali
Posted on 12/03/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
Michael Marqusee, writing in the Guardian, feels that anyone who cares for cricket should celebrate Murali's record-breaking achievement, which is the result of his own skill, accuracy, stamina, variety and ingenuity. Despite the euphoria, one will have to put with the negative calls, particularly from Australia, that the record will be remembered for the wrong reasons.
The definition of a throw appears less clear-cut than was supposed. The authorities responded by revising the laws to allow a degree of flex. This has nothing to do with Murali's feats: the law was changed to reflect new research, not to protect Murali. In retrospect it's clear that, far from enjoying preferential treatment, Murali has been singled out unfairly.
Simon Barnes, writing for the Times, too feels that the Australians will never throw in the towel over Shane Warne’s status as second best.
The argument that Murali is less good because he is compromised (mainly by Australian insularity) is simply not admissible.
The Age’s Greg Baum salutes Murali from Australia.
He has climbed the mountain, and as he plants his flag at the peak, it would be churlish to do other than to congratulate him. Warne - give him his due - already has.
November 25, 2007
Back to school for Kumar
Posted on 11/25/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
Kumar Sangakkara is going back to school next week. “Not many international players can claim their favourite Test venue is their old school pitch,” he writes in the Sunday Telegraph, “but Asgiriya International Stadium is where I learned how to play cricket. This beautiful stadium, ringed by Kandy's green-mantled hills, is full of fond memories.”
How Malinga became a slinger
Posted on 11/25/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
Why does Lasith Malinga bowl with the action he does? What did he learn playing beach cricket as a boy? And why, when others may have given up, did he carry on? Find out, in an interview with him in The Observer.
November 16, 2007
Race to restore Galle to full glory
Posted on 11/16/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
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The ground during the 2004 Sri Lanka-Australia Test
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| The Daily Telegraph’s Tony Francis has been in Galle where the reconstruction of the cricket ground following the devastation of the 2004 tsunami is almost complete.
Only a couple of months ago, the ground on which Sri Lanka entertain England in the third Test next month reminded me of the horse-drawn section of the National Ploughing Championships after two Suffolk Punches had done their work.
And he reports that the venue now has a new indoor cricket centre with funds raised by a woman whose husband died in the disaster.
Julian Ayer was travelling by bus to watch his stepson play for Harrow School at the start of their Sri Lanka tour when the vehicle was submerged on its way to the stadium. Ayer was reported to have helped his wife off the bus but was unable to save himself. His widow was so distressed by the plight of other bereaved families in Sri Lanka's worst affected region that she donated £50,000 to Galle Cricket Club, believing that sport would give destitute youngsters something to cling to.
November 13, 2007
Pressure grows on Cricket Australia
Posted on 11/13/2007 in Australian cricket
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Sri Lanka's Sunday Times makes its point
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| As the row over Cricket Australia’s demands to charge agencies for access to international matches grows, the pressure on the board escalates, although it has, perhaps unsurprisingly, found an ally in the Indian board, an organization which is not averse to grabbing income from anywhere it can.
In Sri Lanka there is widespread anxiety that the public might miss out on a landmark when and if Muttiah Muralitharan breaks Shane Warne’s record of Test wickets. The Sri Lankan board has written to CA and Sri Lanka’s Sunday Times published a silhouette figure with its cricket coverage with a caption: "This space is dedicated to what would have been an action picture of the Test match in progress in Brisbane. The black figure is courtesy of Cricket Australia."
The subject has attracted comment across the globe. In the Gulf News, Gautam Bhattacharyya wrote:
Cricket Australia, one of the most progressive and professional bodies to run the sport, is now being termed as 'greedy.' It's very much a subject of debate, but what is certain is that they have set a rather dangerous precedent now.
In Jamaica’s Gleaner, Tony Becca points out that sports needs the media.
Cricket at all levels has been surviving because of sponsors, for sponsors' presence is key. And if the media, if the newspapers are not present, neither will the sponsor's product or service. Sport has become big business, but it has become big business partly because of the exposure and the coverage it receives from the media - and none more so than cricket.
Greg Baum makes a similar point in The Age:
This, though, is not about marketing. Mostly, cricket shares a mutually convenient relationship with media; cricket sells papers, papers sell cricket. It is true of other sports and other media
The Times of India's Partha Bhaduri takes off on the Indian board's stance.
There’s no denying the fact that such demands could spill over into written content as well, apart from changing the way the Internet functions and is regulated.
November 7, 2007
Here comes Murali... the pace bowler?
Posted on 11/07/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
Shut your eyes and try to imagine Muttiah Muralitharan steaming in, bowling pace. Given he's taken nearly 700 Test wickets with his off-spin, it's not too easy, is it. And yet he started life as a pace bowler, as revealed in the Courier Mail, which also tells the story of his conversion to the spin which has made him famous, and brought him to the brink of the world record for most Test wickets.
Muttiah Muralitharan can expect a rough ride [in Australia] despite calls for respect, writes Gideon Haigh in the Guardian.
October 26, 2007
Armed and dangerous
Posted on 10/26/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
"Far from smoking the peace pipe with Australian crowds, Muttiah Muralitharan ought to go on the offensive," writes Peter Roebuck in the Sydney Morning Herald.
Murali can go further in advancing his cause. Sometimes it is not enough to be polite. After all, he is visiting the country where he has suffered his worst experiences, the country where his action has been condemned on the field, the land where his most outspoken critics can be found. Moreover, he has not played Test cricket hereabouts for 12 years and is a few wickets shy of replacing the local champion at the top of the rankings. He is entitled to feel as relaxed as a lobster at lunchtime.
October 22, 2007
Rock the boat
Posted on 10/22/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
Sri Lanka's chairman of selectors Ashantha de Mel who has strong political affiliations with the president of the country has used it to his advantage causing great damage to the game in the country, writes Sa'adi Thawfeeq in the Colombo-based Nation.
The Sunday Times also discusses the controversy over Atapattu.
One may argue that Atapattu was originally selected and then he on his own opted to stay out because of his differences with the chief selector Asantha de Mel. But, we are talking about a thirty seven year old man who played his last Test match against India way back in December 2005, where he scored 40 and 16 in a match that Sri Lanka lost by 259 runs at Ahamedabad.
October 11, 2007
Atapattu's omission is just not cricket
Posted on 10/11/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
The handling of the Attapattu affair does not inspire confidence that the authorities are treading this path, says an editorial in the Sri Lanka based Daily News.
Also check out Suni Perera's open letter to the Sri Lankan board in lankaweb.com.
...despite the perks and incentives of cricket at the zenith of competiton there could come a time of crisis for Sri Lanka Cricket if players with a strong sense of integrity decided to be loyal to their axed fellow players and stood by them and refused to participate until there was some kind of redress and damage repair to the situation at hand and one need not look too far as the case of Zimbabwe Cricket stands out!
October 8, 2007
Yet another bungling, this time it's Atapattu
Posted on 10/08/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
Sri Lanka's Sunday Times comes down hard on Sri Lankan selectors' handling of Marvan Atapattu.
While reading the autobiography by former opener Roshan Mahanama or attending the tearful press conference given by allrounder Upul Chandana I felt that with a little more thoughtfulness those cases could have been handled better ... Even Sri Lanka’s most noteworthy No. 3 batsman Asanka Gurusinha left the game in sheer disgust soon after he had played a prominent role in Sri Lanka’s maiden World Cup triumph in 1996.
Read Sa'adi Thawfeeq's interview with an angry Atapattu in Cricinfo.
Meanwhile the Daily Mirror's Maxie Kariyawasam pays tribute to Mahes Rodrigo, a cricketing legend of yesteryear was not honoured at a recently held felicitation ceremony for Sri Lankan legends.
Also read Daminda Wijesuriya's interview with Dimitri Mascarenhas in Sunday Times.
September 30, 2007
Will Galle be ready in time?
Posted on 09/30/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
The Telegraph’s travel section contains a piece about what England fans may find when they travel to Sri Lanka this winter… and a hint as to whether or not Galle will be ready for 18 December. In the same paper, a moving article by Kumar Sangakkara recollects his memories of the tsunami and how proud he is of the resilient Sri Lankans.
August 15, 2007
Australian tour will inspire Murali
Posted on 08/15/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
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Muttiah Muralitharan is "comfortable with what Australia is like"
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Muttiah Muralitharan’s manager believes the bowler will use any harassment he receives on the tour of Australia to perform better, Jon Pierik writes in the Herald Sun.
"He is comfortable with what Australia is like," Muralitharan's manager Kushil Gunasekera said. "He understands the harassment given by spectators will only make him more inspired and motivated.
"It will help him bowl better. He is happy to be taking on that challenge because Australia is a real test. He will come to Australia."
In the Age Chloe Saltau talks to Troy Cooley about how the Australian bowlers should embrace Twenty20.
April 1, 2007
The secret of Lankan cricket's good health
Posted on 04/01/2007 in Sri Lankan cricket
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Sri Lankan cricket thrives on its strong support base at the school level
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There are a variety of reasons for Sri Lankan cricket's excellent health. The players, selectors, administrators, coaches, and above all, the fans, have contributed to it. But there is an unseen factor which needs recognition, namely, Sri Lankan culture, especially the culture of the majority community, the Sinhalese, writes P.K Balachandran, Special Correspondent of the Hindustan Times in Colombo.
"They had a hunger for the game. Playing for the country was something very big for the small town boys. They worked hard also because they had few other preoccupations, unlike the ones from Colombo's elite schools who were into studies and computers"
Read the full piece here.
December 11, 2006
Video of Murali's dismissal against New Zealand
Posted on 12/11/2006 in Sri Lankan cricket
The Corridor has a video of Muttiah Muralitharan's controversial dismissal against New Zealand last week.
September 9, 2006
Moody's a man with a mission
Posted on 09/09/2006 in Sri Lankan cricket
While Australia has been pondering where Tom Moody stands in the coaching pecking order, the man himself has been undertaking far more meaningful work - helping provide cheer to a battered nation, feels Alex Brown in the Sydney Morning Herald.
September 1, 2006
It's not just cricket's attitude that stinks
Posted on 09/01/2006 in Miscellaneous
In The Times, former Wisden editor Tim de Lisle highlights the fact that cricket's international merry-go-round is not only hard on the players, it's also pretty environmentally unfriendly. He recalled that while editing Wisden Cricket Monthly a few years ago, he commissioned an investigation into the mileage of top players:
"We named the first winner — Australia's Ian Healy, who had done, from memory, about 70,000 miles. Within a few years, the winner (by then Stephen Fleming, of New Zealand) was doing 100,000 miles. International cricket’s total emissions, for a relatively small sport, must be colossal."
He then points out that the English county circuit is strewn with sponsored cars flying up and down the country's motorways. And then there is Asia.
"Open an Indian magazine and the chances are you will see Sachin Tendulkar sharing a little of his personal cachet with a motorbike. And administrators in the subcontinent still think it’s OK to give the man of the match a bike or even a car. Not even the umpires are immune. Fly Emirates, say their shirts, which is demeaning to them and damaging to the planet."
August 25, 2006
'The ICC should get rid of Hair'
Posted on 08/25/2006 in Sri Lankan cricket
Arjuna Ranatunga speaks to G Krishnan in The Hindustan Times regarding his stance on The Oval farce and his stint in Sri Lankan politics.
The ICC was wrong in having Hair in its panel. When teams had problems with him, he was kept out. By bringing him back in its panel, the ICC has rehabilitated him of sorts. It is very important for the ICC to get rid of people like Hair. By not doing that, not only teams but also countries get upset with each other.
August 18, 2006
Blast takes away another Lankan dream
Posted on 08/18/2006 in Sri Lankan cricket
S Singh, writing in Mid-Day, a Mumbai-based tabloid, tells the story of Dmitry Ratnayake, forced to return to South Africa midway through a special Sri Lankan tour
May 7, 2006
The high priest of left-arm swing and seam bowling
Posted on 05/07/2006 in Sri Lankan cricket
Michael Atherton dissects Chaminda Vaas's mediocre record in England.
It is an anomaly that can be explained partly by the fact that he has not played that much cricket in this country, partly by the absence of the Kookaburra ball, which bowlers use everywhere bar England and India, and partly because bowling in sub-continental conditions has made him far more expert with the old ball than the new. Interestingly, Vaas's record in India, where they use the SG ball which is the closest in design to the English Duke, is also poor.
Non-stop coach trip
Posted on 05/07/2006 in Sri Lankan cricket
Tom Moody tells Vic Marks about his hectic life at the helm of an international cricket team as the first Test at Lord's approaches.
Former Sri Lankan batsman Aravinda De Silva believes the teenager Chamara Hapugedera is a talent capable of taking anybody's place at the crease.
May 2, 2006
Moody's mission
Posted on 05/02/2006 in Sri Lankan cricket
If Sri Lanka are to spring a surprise and emerge victorious from their tour of England, then they will need their coach, Tom Moody, to impart the wisdom he has acquired during a decade of service as a player in the shires. This week, he returns to his old stomping ground at New Road to take on England A.
Sri Lanka's domestic worries
Posted on 05/02/2006 in Sri Lankan cricket
It might not be directly about cricket, but as Sri Lanka’s tour of England kicks into life, their players might be forgiven for keeping a close eye on developments back at home. A long absence overseas is never easy at the best of times, but the Independent reports that Sri Lanka is sliding “sliding inexorably back towards civil war”.
"There has been a drastic increase in violence between government forces and the Tamil Tiger rebels since December, culminating in government air strikes on Tiger positions just outside Trincomalee . The air strikes came after the attempted assassination of the Sri Lankan army chief by a suspected Tiger suicide bomber. More than 100 people have died in the last two weeks alone."
April 11, 2006
Bradman's mirror image
Posted on 04/11/2006 in Sri Lankan cricket
Sanath Jayasuriya's decision to retire from Test cricket was bound to elicit tributes. Ian Chappell remembers that glorious week in Singapore when Jayasuriya "gave cricket fans a glimpse of what it must have been like to watch Sir Donald Bradman bat in the 1930s."
March 25, 2006
A tale of two friends
Posted on 03/25/2006 in Sri Lankan cricket
There's a raging debate going on in Sri Lanka, one about who should captain? Mahela Jayawardena and Kumar Sangakkara have inadvertently entangled themselves in a convoluted scuffle, writes Ganeesha David.
From grief to joy
Posted on 03/25/2006 in Sri Lankan cricket
For Upul Tharanga, the Sri Lankan left-hand opening batsman, the last 13 months have been very hard work, not only has he had to concentrate on building up his cricket career but also help his family get back on their feet and get over the devastating Tsunami
March 11, 2006
The 127th Royal Thomian encounter
Posted on 03/11/2006 in Sri Lankan cricket
The 127th match between Royal College, Colombo and St Thomas’ College, Mt Lavinia, finished today with a victory for the Royals. The encounter - known as the "Battle of the Blues," or the "Big Match" - is 127-years-old and has fielded "many great Prime Ministers, a former President, Ministers and leading citizens of the land" in its history.
There's a feast of information available on the most recent match, including a superb piece by Sripost, a scorecard, some photos and literally dozens of articles about its history.
Of particular interest is Indi's blog. Armed with a camera and a press pass, he provides a fascinating insight into the match and its importance to Colombo:
Colombo is an oven and I’m marinating in beer, coke and arrack at the Royal Thomian match. Boycy got me a press pass and that’s enough to get in. I’m no old boy, but it’s nice to run into so many people I know. Royalists and Thomians are the two elite schools that run Colombo business and society - for better or incestuously retarded worst. There are, however, a lot of good people coming outta there.
We have quite a few articles on previous Royal Thomian encounters at Cricinfo , and Technorati has a list of blogs covering the match.
December 27, 2005
Murali's making things turn for the better
Posted on 12/27/2005 in Sri Lankan cricket
Alex Brown speaks to Muttiah Muralitharan at the end of a tough year.
Muralitharan usually judges himself on wickets, averages and strike-rates, but he's adopted a vastly different method of gauging his success at the end of this year: His charity group has built 220 houses for those who lost everything in the Asian tsunami. And that, more than any 10-wicket haul, is a successful outcome for Muralitharan, who is now revered as much for his charity work in Sri Lanka as his on-field deeds.
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