Sports
Chandraguptha in the running for a Test spot
by Rex Clementine
We have just witnessed a fiercely contested First-Class season culminate in Bloomfield being crowned champions – a long-awaited triumph after 15 years in the wilderness. The tournament had all the hallmarks of a riveting contest, but as the dust settles, a significant shake-up has taken center stage.
In a bold yet ruthless move, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) wielded the axe to trim down the number of First-Class teams, aiming to restore quality over quantity. The biggest casualty? The country’s premier cricket club, SSC, found itself unceremoniously relegated, a decision that sent shockwaves through the cricketing fraternity. Joining them in the drop zone were Ragama CC, Negombo CC, and Kandy Customs. With two more teams set to face the chop next season, the club circuit will be streamlined to just 12 teams, a significant reduction from the previous 26-team structure.
Kudos to SLC for finally making the tough call. Over the years, the First-Class tournament had been diluted beyond recognition, with too many teams and not enough competitive edge. Now, with a leaner and meaner structure, the domestic circuit is expected to regain its sharpness. The top performers from the club season will graduate to the NSL, Sri Lanka’s highly competitive provincial tournament, which carries First-Class status. Selection for the Test team will now be heavily influenced by performances in this high-intensity arena.
With Sri Lanka enduring a rough patch in Test cricket – losing four consecutive matches (two against South Africa and two against Australia) – some inevitable changes are on the horizon. The biggest talking point? The vacant opener’s slot, left behind by the departure of Dimuth Karunaratne.
The race to fill that void is heating up, and two prolific openers have thrown their hats into the ring with impressive returns in the club season. NCC’s Lahiru Udara finished as the leading run-getter, amassing 787 runs at 56, while Bloomfield’s Ron Chandraguptha wasn’t far behind with 729 runs at 48.
Until the First-Class final, Udara seemed to be the front-runner. The 31-year-old has been a consistent performer and has already been around the national squad as a backup opener. But in cricket, big games often redefine narratives, and Chandraguptha seized his moment with a performance that turned the final on its head.
Heading into the summit clash, NCC were overwhelming favourites. With half a dozen Sri Lanka internationals in their ranks, they had the firepower to dictate terms. But one man – Ron Kashyapa Chandraguptha – rewrote the script.
Batting against the odds, he produced a monumental innings, a knock for the ages that swung the pendulum Bloomfield’s way. In scorching Colombo heat, he displayed unwavering concentration, unbreakable patience, and sheer resilience, grinding it out for two full days at the crease. His maiden double century not only batted NCC out of the contest but also catapulted his name into the national selection debate.
What was once a one-horse race for the Test opener’s slot is now a two-way contest. Udara had the early momentum, but Chandraguptha has forced selectors into a rethink. With the NSL tournament in progress, whoever performs better in the next few weeks will likely get the selector’s nod.
While the opener’s position is in focus, another name is knocking on the door for a middle-order berth – Pasindu Sooriyabandara. The 25-year-old Royalist has built an impressive First-Class record, averaging 56 after 50 games. This season, he was instrumental in Moors SC’s campaign, racking up 620 runs at a staggering average of 88.
A player with sound temperament and a wide range of strokes, Sooriyabandara appears ready for the next step. With Sri Lanka struggling for consistency in Test cricket, his introduction into the national setup seems more a matter of when rather than if.
With Sri Lanka’s Test team in transition, the NSL will be a defining tournament. Players like Udara, Chandraguptha, and Sooriyabandara have put themselves in contention, but the final decision rests in how they handle the next big challenge.
One thing is certain—domestic cricket has regained its competitive edge. With fewer teams, higher stakes, and players stepping up on the big occasions, Sri Lanka’s red-ball future may just be heading in the right direction.
Corbin Bosch has been served legal notice by the PCB, alleging breach of contractual obligations, after the South Africa allrounder signed for Mumbai Indians for IPL 2025, thus pulling out of PSL 2025.
This season is the first in which the PSL will be played concurrently with the IPL: The IPL will run from March 22 to May 25, and the PSL from April 11 to May 18. Bosch had been picked by Peshawar Zalmi, in the diamond category, at the PSL draft that was held in January. But on March 8, it was announced by Mumbai Indians that he would be replacing the injured Lizaad Williams in their squad.
The PSL franchises have been keen to take some sort of action on Bosch, as they are worried it could set a precedent for players signing up with the PSL but then switching to the IPL. The idea of an outright ban on such players has also been floated in informal discussions.
A PCB statement said: “The legal notice was served through his agent, and the player has been asked to justify his actions of withdrawing from his professional and contractual commitments. The PCB management has also outlined the repercussions of his departure from the league and expects his response within the stipulated time frame. The PCB will not make any further comments on the matter.”
The statement did not specify what the time frame was for Bosch to respond.
The PCB had shifted the PSL window with a view to improve the quality and availability of overseas players whom the league would be able to sign. When the PSL was in the February-March window, it also had to compete with the SA20, ILT20 and the BPL for players. ESPN Cricinfo had reported last year when the window was changed that holding the PSL draft after the IPL auction had also been discussed, to have greater clarity about the availability of overseas players for the league. Leading into this season, the IPL auction was held in November 2024 and the PSL draft in January 2025.
The PSL draft duly attracted a large number of high-profile players, including David Warner, Daryl Mitchell, Jason Holder, Rassie van der Dussen and Kane Williamson.
[Cricinfo]
By A Special Sports Correspondent
Kandy Sports Club crowned themselves as ‘Cup Championship’ winners in the inter-club league rugby tournament when they overcame their final hurdle by beating Havelocks Sports Club by 50 points to 24 at Nittawela last evening.
Kandy SC was anyway assured of the title this season before this final game of the season even began, given that they were unbeaten thus far in the league tournament. Kandy SC collected their points through seven tries, six conversions and a penalty while Havelocks Sports Club responded with a three converted tries and a penalty.
Kandy SC set the pace for the game from the kick off itself and recorded first half tries through Dinal Ekanayake, Srinath Sooriyabandara, Kenula Hettiarachchi and Dahan Wickremaarachchi and all four conversions were slotted in by Tharinda Ratwatte. Havelocks SC got most of their points in the first half through Sandesh Jayawickreme who scored a try and booted through a conversion. The penalty for the Park Club was kicked right by Samuel Maduwantha.
Kandy SC faced some resistance from Havies after the turn around, but the side from Nittawela found the try line by breaking through a barrage of tackles from the men wearing the pink and chocolate jerseys.
Dahan Wickremaarachchi started the ball rolling for Kandy with a try after the turn around which took the side’s score to 38 with the conversion. Havies played in patches thereafter and scored through Jayathu Rajaratne and Janidu Fernando. Jayawickreme was spot on with the conversions.
Kandy’s Ethen Schneider Loos smashed his way through for the side’s sixth try which was converted by Ratwatte. Kandy had the game in the bag despite Havies playing attacking rugby whenever they had possession. But the score line deference that Kandy maintained throughout the game made it hard for Havies to make a real comeback into the game.
The Nittwala side erupted in jubilation when Ekanayake punted ahead and sent crowd favourite Nigel Ratwatte for the seventh and final try. There was speculation throughout the game that this would be Nigel’s final game for the Kandy SC side. Surprisingly Tharinda missed the conversion.
At the awards presentation ceremony after the game, Kandy Sports Club’s Tharinda Ratwatte was named as the highest points scorer for the 2024/25 league rugby season. He has accumulated 139 points this season.
Havelocks Sports produced the highest try scorer for the season. That award went to Jayathu Rajaratne of Havies. He has had 16 touchdowns this season. Havelocks Sports Club had to be satisfied with the runners-up trophy at the awards presentation. Players from both sides including the coaching staff were presented with medals by the organisers of the tournament.
Meanwhile CR&FC did well in their last outing in the Cup Championship segment of the league tournament when they beat Air Force by 31 points to 16 at Longden Place.
In the two Plate Segment matches, Sri Lanka Navy beat Sri Lions by 41 points to 38 at Race Course.In the other match of the Plate segment, Police SC beat Army SC by 24 points to 17. The match was played at Police Park.
Mutthusami Sivarajan and Rasara Wijesuriya won the men’s and women’s Cross Country Championships of the National Sports Festival conducted in Nuwara Eliya.
Sivarajan representing Central Province returned a time of 34 minutes and 21 seconds to finish ahead of Samantha Pushpakumara and Damith Hemantha Kumara.
In the women’s category, Wijesuriya from Eastern Province clocked 38 minutes and 41 seconds finish ahead of Madhushani Herath and Chamini Herath.
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