Sujeeva Nivunhella, in the Sunday Island, 12 June
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It was a grand occasion on Sunday, June 5, at Lord’s cricket grounds asSri LankaandEngland participated in their second Test match. Spectators were not only treated with a fine game of cricket, where Sri Lankan Captain Tillakaratne Dilshan scored a record 193, but also a dazzling display of Sri Lankan culture by a Kandyan dance troupe, led by the legendary Mudiyanse Thennakoon during the lunch break. The dancers were clad in gold and orange which represented the colours of the Marylebone Cricket Club which was headquartered at Lord’s. Speaking exclusively to ‘The Sunday Island,’ one of the main organisers of the event, chairman of the British – Sri Lanka Chamber of Commerce, Jayampathi Perera, said that with the help of the Trade Dept. at the SL High Commission here in London, it took months to negotiate with the English cricket board and MCC for a programme of events at both Lord’s and Rose Bowl grounds.Perera said: “With MCC’s notoriously strict guidelines on what they allow at this prestigious ground, we had to make absolutely sure we work to a precise plan, so all involved with this event knew what will be done at a given time.” Perera praised the staff and management at the match, Sanjika Perera, Director of Sri Lanka tourism, and his able colleague, Nalin Perera.