Sri Lanka punched their ticket to the Asia Rugby Men’s Championship 2025 with a commanding 59-19 win over Malaysia at the Racecourse Grounds in Colombo, delivering a performance that was both ruthless and rousing.

The Tuskers, brimming with confidence after last year’s dominant Division One campaign, wasted no time stamping their authority. A rolling maul laid the foundation early, with Danushka Ranjan slicing through before skipper Nigel Ratwatte and Mursheed Zubair linked up to send Janindu Dilshan over for the opener.

Malaysia briefly hit back, capitalizing on a scrum turnover as No. 8 Etonia Vaga bulldozed over, with Amirul Aqil converting. But Sri Lanka’s response was swift. Despite conceding a few penalties, they held firm, turned over possession, and launched another clinical attack – Ranjan finishing this one himself, Zubair converting with ease.

From there, the floodgates opened.

A sharp 8-9 move between Lasindu Karunathilake and Heshan Jansen opened space for Akash Madushanka to score. Then came another well-rehearsed scrum play, freeing up Dinal Ekanayake to step inside for Sri Lanka’s fourth. Just before half-time, a blistering counter from deep saw Naveen Marasinghe bulldoze over, Zubair’s boot remaining immaculate as Sri Lanka went into the break firmly on top.

The second half began just as explosively. Zubair orchestrated a thrilling counter-attack, combining with Ranjan and Ekanayake, who completed his brace. A Thilina Bandara turnover soon sparked another flowing move, and Ekanayake sealed a hat-trick in style. The former Kingswood College, Kandy player was unstoppable. Zubair slotted his sixth straight conversion, his radar untouched.

Malaysia showed spirit, with Vaga powering over twice more to complete his own hat-trick. But by then, the horse had bolted.

Dilshan intercepted a loose Malaysian pass to cruise in for his second try, and Sri Lanka’s forwards had the final say. A well-worked lineout and rolling maul saw Dahan Wickramarachchi crash over to cap off a dominant afternoon.With power up front, panache out wide, and precision off the tee, Sri Lanka made a resounding statement. The Tuskers are back on the big stage—and they’ve arrived with a roar.

by Carlos Van de Berg