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Can spluttering Sri Lanka get up to full speed at the World Cup Qualifier?

Published

3 years ago

2023/06/19

Priyan

Dushmantha Chameera will be among Sri Lanka's key players at the World Cup Qualifier (pic Cricinfo)

Champions once, runners-up twice, a semi-final and quarter-final thrown in for good measure, and ever present in the tournament since making their first appearance in 1975. Safe to say, Sri Lanka’s World Cup record is far from shabby. But now, for the first time in their history, they are in genuine danger of missing out altogether.

Unthinkable? Perhaps. Impossible? Not so much. But how did it come to this? Well, to get the obvious answer out of the way, quite frankly, they haven’t been all that good.

Since the end of the 2019 World Cup, Sri Lanka have won just 18 of 42 ODIs, out of which 23 were part of the World Cup Super League. Of those, they won seven.

Much of this dismal record is primarily down to their batting. In this period, Sri Lanka have crossed the 300-mark just nine times, and struggled in nearly every key batting metric. Dot-ball percentage in the last ten overs? 38.26%. Scoring rate in that phase? A mere 7.38, putting them ninth out of 12 Test-playing nations; only Zimbabwe, Ireland and Afghanistan have been worse – two of them they will likely be facing in the qualifiers. even in the crucial middle-over period (11-40) they dwell near the bottom, eighth this time, striking at 5.02 per over with half (50.52%) of the balls they faced being dots.

But it must also be noted that Sri Lanka had a particularly rough set of fixtures for this World Cup Super League cycle. Four of the eight series they played were against India, South Africa, England and New Zealand – the last two away from home.

While they won just one of those, what really dented their chances were the away defeats to Bangladesh and West Indies. And yet, this is a side that has beaten both South Africa and Australia at home – the latter series, as luck would have it, was not part of the Super League – and most recently strung together some impressive displays against Afghanistan – also at home – a team that comfortably qualified for the World Cup.

This, in a nutshell, is the story of Sri Lankan cricket over the last few years. Stifling lows mixed with thrilling highs. Not quite good enough for automatic qualification for the World Cup, but certainly not bad enough to rule out entirely.

So, here they are, in Zimbabwe to play a bunch of qualifiers, in conditions that will not even remotely resemble what they are likely to face in India later this year – provided they qualify of course.

Covid-19 meant that, despite his best intentions and enthusiasm, former head coach Mickey Arthur was hamstrung from the get-go. Tasked with revitalising the side after an abysmal showing at the 2019 World Cup, attempts to build trust and camaraderie while simultaneously trying to improve results was an entirely new challenge with social distancing, bio-bubbles and lockdowns thrown into the mix.

It was around this time that Sri Lanka Cricket also sought to usher in a more youth-centric policy, which has continued under Arthur’s replacement Chris Silverwood. The move, in fairness, paid dividends with Sri Lanka emerging as surprise Asia Cup winners last year, albeit in the T20 format. But in ODIs, there have only been glimpses of that same promise. A series whitewash at the hands of India at the start of the year, including a record 317 run defeat, was a particularly demoralising nadir.

Injuries too have played their part, with in-form Kusal Perera and Avishka Fernando missing a large chunk of Super League games. But more than that, it has been the absence of Dushmantha Chameera that has hurt. In Chameera, Sri Lanka have on their hands one of the world’s premier seamers, one who is able to execute precise plans at an express pace. A fit Chameera – whose workload is being carefully managed – will be at the forefront of any Sri Lankan success in the coming weeks and months.

On the face of it, it should be straightforward. While this is not Sri Lanka’s first qualifying experience – they had to qualify for the T20 World Cup last year – it is the first time they have been required to do so in the 50-over format.

The first round is unlikely to provide much trouble with Ireland likely to be the toughest opponents in a group that also has Scotland, UAE and Oman. It’s in the next stage, though, that the potential banana skins may arise.

Barring any surprises, Sri Lanka’s likely opponents in the Super Six round will be West Indies, hosts Zimbabwe, and one of Netherlands, Nepal or USA. The first two should provide the biggest challenge but one that this Sri Lanka side should be able to overcome.

However, if the past few years have shown anything, it is that this is a team capable of beating the best but also holds within itself the capacity to capitulate suddenly and frantically. It is why Sri Lanka’s loyal fanbase goes into these games with a grizzled sense of trepidation. A well-oiled machine, they are not. Rather, one that’s spluttering up to full speed, duct tape at the ready, hoping the wheels don’t come off, as they seek to build up a head of steam to power them through.

(Cricinfo)

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Italian Naval Vessel ‘ITS Giuseppe Garibaldi’ arrives in Colombo

Published

2 hours ago

2026/09/9

Priyan

The Italian Naval Vessel ‘ITS Giuseppe Garibaldi’ arrived in Sri Lanka today, 9 September 2026, on a replenishment visit.

The Sri Lanka Navy welcomed the visiting ship in accordance with naval traditions at the port of Colombo.

‘ITS Giuseppe Garibaldi’ is a 180m long Landing Helicopter Aircraft Vessel commanded by Captain Marco GUERRIERO.

During the ship’s stay in Sri Lanka, the Commanding Officer of ‘ITS Giuseppe Garibaldi’ is scheduled to call on the Commander Western Naval Area.

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England Women appoint Leah Poulton as managing director

Published

6 hours ago

2026/09/9

Priyan

Leah Poulton will become Managing Director, England Women [Cricinfo]

Leah Poulton the former Australia batter turned coach and administrator, will join England Women as managing director, succeeding Clare Connor.

Poulton will be charged with overseeing the success of the international team and pathways after the ECB cited her “impressive track record driving women’s cricket forward in Australia”.

Poulton earned 90 caps for Australia before retiring in 2015 and has spent the past six years as head of elite female cricket at Cricket New South Wales. There, she oversees cricket performance operations across two WBBL franchises, women’s state cricket and one of the world’s largest women’s cricket talent pathways.

Before that, she spent three years at Cricket Australia as a High Performance Coach, where she was instrumental in setting up Australia’s enviable women’s high-performance pathway, which included developing the Australia A and Under-19s women’s teams.

In her new role, she will be accountable for the performances of England Women, England Women A, England Women Under-19s and the overall women’s high-performance system.

Poulton will start in her new role in November with England set to host the Women’s Ashes next summer. She fills the role vacated by Connor, who announced earlier this year that she would be leaving the ECB after a career spanning 18 years, and will work closely with England Women’s head coach Charlotte Edwards and captain Nat Sciver-Brunt.

“I’m incredibly excited and honoured to be joining England, and to have the opportunity to help shape our programmes and, most importantly, invest in our people,” Poulton said. “I’m looking forward to working with Charlotte, Nat and the wider team, building on the strong foundations already in place and taking the programme forward.

“I know how vital strong pathways and a healthy domestic game are to sustained success, so I’m looking forward to connecting with people across the game and helping give the next generation of English players every opportunity to thrive. It’s a huge privilege to be part of England Women, and I can’t wait to get started.”

Richard Gould, the ECB’s CEO, said that with the senior women’s team had made under Edwards, appointed last year, and having reached the final of their recent home T20 World Cup, England Women were well placed for a successful era.

“I’m delighted to welcome Leah on board to help us build on this and take us to the next level,” Gould said. “She has a deep understanding of international cricket from her playing career and has built an impressive reputation in her time in administration.

“I believe she and Lottie will be a formidable combination, and will continue the team’s progress and development as we compete for the ICC Women’s Champions Trophy and Women’s Ashes in 2027.”

[Cricinfo]

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Avindu makes history with first World University gold for Sri Lanka

Published

8 hours ago

2026/09/9

Priyan

University of Sri Jayewardenepura weightlifter Avindu Liyanagedara made history yesterday by becoming the first Sri Lankan university student to win a gold medal at a World University sports event, as Sri Lanka made a spectacular start to the 2026 World University Weightlifting Championship in Doha, Qatar.

‎Liyanagedara won the men’s 60kg title, while Sabaragamuwa University’s Nipun Dissanayake added a bronze medal in the 65kg category on the opening day of the championship.

‎Liyanagedara lifted 105kg in the snatch and 132kg in the clean and jerk for an impressive combined total of 237kg.

‎Spain’s Gomez Martinez took the silver with 228kg, while Chun-Yen Tang of Chinese Taipei won bronze with 227kg.

‎Dissanayake also secured a podium finish in the 65kg class with a total of 220kg, comprising a 100kg snatch and a 120kg clean and jerk.

‎Iran’s Mohhadov Tehran won the gold with 289kg, with Moldova’s Ion Badanev taking silver with 288kg.

‎Liyanagedara’s achievement represents a landmark breakthrough for Sri Lankan university sport. His gold is the first gold medal won by a Sri Lankan university student at a World University sports event, while Dissanayake’s bronze further strengthened the country’s historic opening-day showing.

‎The Sri Lanka University Sports Association has entered five male and two female athletes for the championship, with University of Colombo’s Sujan Walgampaya serving as team manager and coach.

‎The championship continues in Doha until September 12, with Sri Lanka already assured of a memorable place in the history of World University sport through Liyanagedara’s historic gold medal.