ONE: ESPNcricnfo staff:
Tharanga Paranavitana, the 38-year old Sri Lanka batsman, has announced his retirement from international cricket. Known as an old-school opener, he played 32 Test matches for his country, scoring 1792 runs including two hundreds and 11 fifties.
Andrew Fidel Fernando, in ESPNcricinfo, 4 February 2019, where the title is “No quick fixes, Sri Lankan cricket needs a bottom-up overhaul”
Sri Lanka have lost 16 of their last 18 international matches, so there are rumours floating around about replacing the coach again. Rumours that Sri Lanka Cricket has inquired about the availability of top coaches overseas. That the island’s sports ministry – essentially running cricket in the country at present – has consulted lawyers about the legal ramifications of firing or demoting Chandika Hathurusingha. Perhaps they will remove him from the national side and send him to the High Performance Centre. This is what they have just meted out to batting coach Thilan Samaraweera, who was replaced in the national set-up in December.
Suresh Murugaser, an original essay entitled “What ails Sri Lanka Cricket!” … with highlighting emphasis in the text being an imposition by The Editor, Cricketique
Let’s face it. All is not well with Sri Lanka Cricket – both the organisation and the game itself. I’m simply making a few observations in the hope that the powers- that-be take notice, and make calculated efforts to put things right.
This is the cradle and nursery of our cricket culture, and it even produced cricketers who were able to walk into the Sri Lanka side. What’s happened is that, under the Schools Cricket Association (which, till very recently operated independently of Sri Lanka Cricket), which was under the purview of school Principals and Masters-in-Charge, has become a law unto itself. Continue reading
Rex Clementine… in a wide-ranging review which slashes the SLC cricket administration … Island, 9 April 2017
Sri Lanka’s ‘A’ team made a huge impact when they toured South Africa in 2009. No Sri Lankan team has done so well in South Africa. The fast and bouncy wickets in that country has always proved to be the undoing of batsmen who had been brought up on low and slow surfaces. The man who guided Sri Lanka to that unprecedented success was Chandika Hathurusinghe. That team was captained by Thilina Kandamby and included players like Angelo Mathews, Suranga Lakmal and Tharanga Paranavithana.
Kumar Sangakkara was the captain of the national team at that stage. Sanga took immediate note and requested the Board to relieve Hathurusinhe of ‘A’ team duties and allow him to work with the national team.
Continue reading
Rex Clementine in the Island, 4 March 2017,where the title is
Should Sri Lanka fear Bangladesh really? On paper the hosts are a far better side. In their top seven, Bangladesh have just two players who average over 40 in Test cricket – Shakib Al Hasan (40) and Mominul Haque (49) and in bowling, they lack the variety or the experience of Sri Lankans. Yet, many fear that this two match series – that gets underway on Tuesday in Galle – as the one where the tourists could turn the tables. There are valid reasons for such concerns. 
Charu Ekanayake
Dasun Shanaka: Who, in my opinion is the best bet for the no. 4 position in the national T20 team in the upcoming world t20. Scored 2 hundreds in the ongoing domestic T20 competition playing for SSC. he is currently the highest scorer in the same tournament with 338 runs at an average of 67 and s/r of 222. I’ve only seen him in action once during his t20 debut against Pakistan, but he barely got a chance to bat in that. Looks to have the ability to clear the fence with 33 sixes to his name in 6 matches.
Minod Bhanuka: A 20-year old wicket keeper batsman (Left hander), represented Sri Lanka in the u19 world cup in 2014. Already knocking on the door for national selection. Has done really when in first class cricket. Recently scored a 300 in the domestic three-day competition — a rare feat for a Lankan player. He also scored a well composed century against the touring West Indies side last year playing for the Board President’s XI.. He has only played 10 FC games thus far, but has an average of 58.50 coming in at no. 3 for SSC Continue reading
S R Pathiravithana
Deprivation sometimes could transform into gallantry. It was a make-or-break affair for Thilanga Sumathipala, a man who was turned into a doormat of ‘interimism’ (a word that we coined under the given circumstances) for more than a decade through constant shutting down of the elected power base through the installation of interim committees.
Thilanga Sumathipala
The newly elected Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) President, Sumathipala, has gone through the mill of cricket governance seeing the yo-yo effects of these experiences. Yet, he lived with his passion for cricket through all those years and now finally he is sitting in the office by the SSC grounds with that magnificent view and will be holding the magic wand of cricket power presumably for the next two years.
Last week the Sunday Times Musings had an exclusive chat with Sumathipala and he outlined his future vision for Sri Lanka Cricket and other matters pertaining to the wellbeing of the game.
First we asked the new president how he sees the challenges before him – a cricket team which is hobbling in the international arena, along with matters which are relevant to cricket governance. Sumathipala explained: “I think our first priority is the national team. We feel at present the national team is in disarray. Taking the whole gamut of Test cricket, ODI and T-20 cricket, we feel we have fairly a big issue at hand. On the other hand, we have a problem with the national coach.
When we look at a dedicated professional team, his responsibility is not only coaching. He is in-charge of the entire support service, training schedules, warm-up matches, setting up captain’s meetings. Continue reading
Michael Roberts, courtesy of islandcricket.lk
In chatting cricket with Michael de Zoysa early in June we addressed the issue of spin bowlers in the longer-format of cricket in the light of Murali’s retirement and Rangana Herath’s aging 37 year-old frame. De Zoysa was concerned because he felt the majority of the options were rollers of the ball rather than genuine spin-merchants, a type of bowling that he considered of limited value in the longer format of cricket. Dilruwan Perera (aged 33 now), in his view, was “a genuine off-spinner,” while Tharinda Kaushal (22 years) was a good prospect who needed to develop consistency and guile.
Intriguingly and with some foresight de Zoysa presented Jeffrey Vandersay (aged 25), a right-arm leg-spinner, as a good prospect. This he did early in June well before Vandersay was picked for the trial match against Pakistan where he proceeded to take 5 wickets in the first innings and a brace in the second.[1] De Zoysa is an SSC stalwart and Vandersay plays for that club now,[2] but it is evident now that more than club loyalty directed his assessment. Vandersay could be an asset in the future and one hopes that he is made to concentrate on the longer form of cricket for the near-future.
Vandersay-–Pic from Lake House 
Sandakan —Pic from http://www.ceylontoday
S. R. Pathiravithana in the Sunday Times
I. The A’ Team’s Caribbean tour: Mock preparation and selection muck
There is a certain school of thought in cricketing circles that feels that actions of the present selection committee and the reactions of Sri Lanka Cricket are faulty and diverse. It is rather surprising that the Present Selection Committee which includes two players who captained the country in the modern era and another player who also played the game in the same period – Sanath Jayasuriya, Hashan Tillekeratne and Pramodya Wickremasinghe – are making these faux pas. The Sri Lanka ‘A’ team which consists of next-in-line players for the national caps is on the verge of embarking on a month-long tour of the West Indies. They will play two four-day unofficial Test matches, three one-day internationals and two T20 matches between June 1 and June 28. They are scheduled to leave the country in the last week of May. Continue reading
Tim Wigmore, courtesy of ESPNcricinfo where the title is different
Pic from AFP
Thilan Samaraweera may have played for 12 years for Sri Lanka but his first season in county cricket, where he is fulfilling “one of my dreams”, is bringing its own challenges. Samaraweera’s enthusiasm, after fielding for Worcestershire, is in stark contrast to Manchester’s rain, wind and unrelenting chill, which are enough to make anyone question the sanity of organising first-class cricket at Old Trafford in April. “You get tougher and tougher when you field in this cold weather,” he said. “It’s not easy. You get tougher and tougher living away from home.” Continue reading
