Category Archives: cricket and life

August 17, 2016 · 3:20 pm

Spins and Grins: Diarizing the Third Test at the SSC

Gomin Dayasri’s Diary on the THIRD TEST at the SSC 

Australia's captain Steven Smith (C) and teammates look on during the presentation ceremony after Sri Lanka's victory in the third and final Test match between Sri Lanka and Australia at The Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) Ground in Colombo on August 17, 2016. / AFP / LAKRUWAN WANNIARACHCHI (Photo credit should read LAKRUWAN WANNIARACHCHI/AFP/Getty Images)

Australia’s captain Steven Smith (C) and teammates look on during the presentation ceremony after Sri Lanka’s victory in the third and final Test match between Sri Lanka and Australia at The Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) Ground in Colombo on August 17, 2016. =  AFP/LAKRUWAN WANNIARACHCHI LAKRUWAN WANNIARACHCHI/AFP/Getty Images)

DAY ONE, 13th August 

After 75 minutes of play Sri Lanka were 23 for 5! Two test wins has disturbed the equilibrium of our batsmen – cranky shots caused the downfall. Wicket was not weird or wired; Aussies reaped a windfall. In the midst of falling wickets, tourists at the SSC were re-arranging schedules to spend time at beach resorts with a match unlikely to extend beyond Day Three after an Australian victory. At close of play with Sri Lanka reaching 214 for 5 the reservations were left unconfirmed. Continue reading →

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August 17, 2016 · 2:58 pm

Brettig’s Brilliant Deciphering of Test Disasters in Lanka

Daniel Brettig, courtesy of ESPNcricinfo, 17 August 2016, where the title is “Clueless Australia need a cultural shift”

In 1969, when choosing the Australian touring team for India, the selectors omitted a young Greg Chappell to the surprise of many. When pressed for a reason why, the selection chairman Sir Donald Bradman is said to have replied: “We don’t want him going to India and getting sick.” Though Bill Lawry’s team went on to win a fractious and tightly contested series, Bradman’s comment endured as a summation of Australian attitudes to Asia for years afterwards. It was the place you went to to get sick, to have your batting average halved by wily spinners and trigger-happy umpires, and to have your back broken by pitches designed to break fast bowlers’ hearts. Tim May, the former Test spin bowler, penned a satirical book called Mayhem, that focused on digestive misadventures as the hallmark of trips to the subcontinent.

herath plus -AFP Hero Herath celebrates —Pic AFP

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August 13, 2016 · 5:41 pm

Dhananjaya’s Casual Brilliance frustrates the Aussies

Andrew Fidel Fernando,  courtesy of ESPNcricinfo 13 August 2016, where the title is “Australia hapless before de Silva’s insouciance”

Regimes change every few years, the rupee is dropping, and climate change is heating up our seas, but the one great, immutable truth about life is that nowhere in the universe does time move slower than in a Sri Lankan government office. The island’s bureaucrats are a marvel of evolution. Having come to life in a primordial soup of bribes, backhanders and political favours, these folk have, over billions of years, become perfectly adapted to moving at speeds that make sea cucumbers look like rocket ships, to answering questions with statements of peerless ambiguity, and to being exquisitely adept at maximising the frustration of every non-bureaucrat in a few-kilometres radius.

Sri Lanka's Dhananjaya de Silva celebrates scoring a hundred during the first day of their third test cricket match against Australia in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, Aug. 13, 2016. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

Sri Lanka’s Dhananjaya de Silva celebrates scoring a hundred during the first day of their third test cricket match against Australia in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, Aug. 13, 2016 —AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena

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August 9, 2016 · 7:05 pm

Murali’s Testing Times …. Through Thick and Thin

Vithushan Ehantharaja, courtesy of The Cricket Monthly where the title is “When Murali bared his Soul”

Murali ++

There’s a sincerity to Mark Nicholas as he stares into the camera. He looks almost childlike in appearance: suit slightly oversized, top button done up and tie fastened yet not dovetailing. This isn’t the Mark Nicholas who prowls the pristine greens of Australia’s outfields with the manner of one on top of the food chain. Here he is sitting, shoulders flexed in. There’s uncertainty in the air and he can do little to hide it. The footage rolls.

It’s July 5, 2004, and Lord’s is preparing for an England-West Indies ODI. While most of the ground is a hub of noise, as cables are unreeled, fastened and taped, the Nursery Ground is still. Nicholas is in dark trousers and a cream shirt, with sleeves rolled up. Standing next to him, Muttiah Muralitharan is wearing a sleeveless Sri Lanka T-shirt. Continue reading →

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August 2, 2016 · 5:07 pm

Murali is placed Where he should be: Among the Immortals

Mahinda Wijesinghe, from the Sunday Island, 31 July 2016, with the title “Congratulations Murali on a Long Overdue Honour”

The majority of lovers of cricket, especially the Sri Lankan supporters, would be thrilled that Muttiah Muralidaran, known the world over as ‘Murali’ has been inducted as the 80th member of the ICC’s Hall of Fame.  He is the first Sri Lankan to be thus honoured. Those appointed to this coveted membership are based on the ICC “recognizing the achievements of these legends of the game from cricket’s long history of the game.”

25a-Murali wired up23d-Murali appeals

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August 1, 2016 · 4:22 pm

Arise Sir Garfield

sir garfield--getty imagesGetty Images … and www.pinterest.com Continue reading →

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August 1, 2016 · 7:20 am

Striking Scenes from the 1975 World Cup in England

teams in colmnsThe eight teams in the finals lineup –spruced up …. The captains are, front row from left: APB Tennekoon (Sri Lanka), Asif Iqbal (Pakistan), Clive Lloyd (West Indies), Mike Brearley (England), Kim Hughes (Australia), Mark Burgess (New Zealand), S Venkataraghavan (India), GE Brisbane (Canada) … Photograph: Patrick Eagar via Getty Images

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July 30, 2016 · 4:56 pm

Another Vaas? … of a Different Sort. Lakshan Sandakan

Paththamperuma Arachchige Don Lakshan Rangika Sandakan

Sri Lanka's Lakshan Sandakan (C) is congratulated by his teammates after dismissing Australia's Joe Burns during the fourth day of their opening Test match between Sri Lanka and Australia at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Pallekele on July 29, 2016. / AFP / LAKRUWAN WANNIARACHCHI (Photo credit should read LAKRUWAN WANNIARACHCHI/AFP/Getty Images)

Sri Lanka’s Lakshan Sandakan (C) is congratulated by his teammates after dismissing Australia’s Joe Burns during the fourth day of their opening Test match between Sri Lanka and Australia at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Pallekele on July 29, 2016. LAKRUWAN WANNIARACHCHI/AFP/Getty Images

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July 30, 2016 · 4:18 pm

Out of the Ashes of War: North-East Under 22 Team pushes ahead

Daily Mirror, 2014 where the title is “Taking their chances, North East U23 team make strides”

Overcoming the most difficult realities during and after the 30-year civil war, a group of young cricketers have made great strides in showing the hidden talent waiting to be discovered in the North and East of the country. Playing in the domestic Under 23 tournament, the North East Combined team have taken just two years to make significant progress and prove that given a chance they could do as well as anyone. Having made the finals of the Division III this year, with a combination of players from Batticaloa, Trincomalee, Kanthale, Vavuniya, Killinochchi and Jaffna, they have not only beaten their opponents, but moved up a notch into the Division II tournament. NE under 22 team

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July 30, 2016 · 3:53 am

Mr. Equanimity. Accolades for Kusal Mendis

Rex Clementine, deploying Graham Ford, Island, 30 July 2016

Sri Lanka coach Graham Ford has done some high profile coaching jobs with the South African national team and English counties Surrey and Kent. Speaking after close of play on day four in the first Test against Australia, he said Kusal Mendis’ outstanding 176 was one of the best knocks he had ever seen. “It’s one of the best innings I’ve ever seen. It was an absolutely brilliant knock. He seemed to have a plan against all the bowlers – he had an option for all the bowlers. He showed real composure. The odd one did explode and turn on him but he didn’t bother about the previous delivery. He just focused on the next ball and got on with the job. He is an amazing talent. He works really hard and really loves the game,” Ford said.

AA=KUSAL M-Eranga Jayawardena Kusal –Pic by Eranga Jayawardena Continue reading →

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