Sports
Cricket’s invisible men
Rex Clementine in Mohali
As the national cricket team made a mockery out of the opening Test match against India here in Mohali with wrong selections and combinations the team is faced with more trouble as they are unable to fly in replacements due to delay in processing visas.
Asitha Fernando, who has featured in three Test matches was the possible replacement Sri Lanka were trying to bring in but that’s not gone to plan and even if he gets the visa, he is unlikely to be available for selections for the second Test in Bangalore as he has to undergo a three day quarantine before joining the team.
With Lahiru Kumara ruled out with a hamstring injury, Dushmantha Chameera, who was expected to feature in the second Test is complaining of ankle pain and Sri Lanka are wary of exposing the injury prone fast bowler ahead of a hectic cricket season. Although Binura Fernando is the automatic choice, the team management have concerns about him as he has previously broken down in middle of games. That makes Chamika Karunaratne the Hobson’s choice and he’s expected to feature in the side along with Suranga Lakmal and Vishwa Fernando. If Chameera doesn’t play, it will be a killer blow for Sri Lanka.
In the first Test, playing Kumara without a single First Class game under his belt since his last injury as if weren’t a bad enough, it surprised many when he limped out to bat struggling to move his feet. Assuming it was a case of Sri Lanka needing ten runs to avoid the follow on, sending out the injured last man would have made sense. But here Sri Lanka were trailing by 400 runs. Then with the team all set for a massive defeat, Kumara was sent out again in the second innings. Surely, your number 11 is not going to make a hundred. The only thing that could have happened with him coming out to bat was the fast bowler aggravating the injury.
The coaching staff seems to be heavily relying for input from Colombo, worried to take decisions independently. Video footage of the Mohali pitch was sent to Colombo to ask what combination the team should play. Sri Lanka went with three seamers and one spinner whereas India went with three spin options. Eventually, the team became the laughing stock as seamers got little purchase while India’s spinners were handful with Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin accounting for 15 of the 20 wickets.
Young Pathum Nissanka had done a terrific job as an opener having scored three half-centuries in the two match series against West Indies in December. What crime he had committed to be demoted to number three remains a mystery. Interestingly, his replacement Lahiru Thirimanne since playing the Bangladesh Test match last year had not featured in any First Class games. Tactically, it was a blunder sending two left-handed batsmen against the off-spin of Ravichandran Ashwin.
As expected, Ashwin came onto the attack in the fifth over of the innings and had his man. In the second innings, Ashwin didn’t wait that long. He bowled the first over and once again dismissed Thirimanne, this time for a duck. The invisible men in Colombo had thought it was fit that Thirimanne was good enough to open batting against world’s best bowling attack having not featured in a First Class game for nearly a year.
The confidence level of the team is at a low ebb. The coaching staff seems to be not putting their foot down in areas where they need to show authority as they know they are all on borrowed time with interim appointments.
For every minute thing the invisible men in Colombo are consulted and the results have been disastrous with Sri Lanka suffering their third heaviest Test defeat in history. Team’s planning has been awful.
Sri Lanka Cricket often gets the blame for team’s sorry performances, but this debacle can not be placed on the doorstep of the board for they clearly mange only the administrative part with cricket being run by invisible men. They are not in India with the team but very soon will arrive here after the Test match is over as the carnival is set to begin. By then, the horse has bolted and the image of nation’s cricket team would have taken a huge blow. The invisible men will not get exposed. They will get their men like Mubaraks and Kandambys to run the show now that they have failed to bring in Farbrace and Ford. Cricket remains their private property and only their friends will play a role in cricket. Invisible men will continue to be invisible.
Latest News
Scotland face West Indies with a chance to reopen World Cup wounds
Scotland take on West Indies in Leeds at 18:30 local time (17:30 GMT) in Group 2 of the Women’s T20 World Cup 2026. Both teams won their opening matches in this competition – Shemaine Campbelle’s unbeaten 90 aided by New Zealand’s dropped catches saw West Indies emerging victorious, while a strong all round performance from Scotland brushed aside Ireland.
Scotland and West Indies have played each other only three times across formats – their lone T20I meeting coming at the last World Cup. Crucially, though, Scotland dealt West Indies perhaps their biggest blow in recent times with their win in the Women’s ODI World Cup Qualifier last year. Scotland staved off an all-round show from Hayley Matthews to eke out an 11-run win, denying West Indies a chance to qualify for the ODI World Cup last year.
Coming on the back of a comfortable win, expect Scotland to go in unchanged.
Scotland (probable XI): Darcey Carter, Katherine Fraser, Kathryn Bryce (capt), Sarah Bryce (wk), Ailsa Lister, Megan McColl, Priyanaz Chatterji, Rachel Slater, Chloe Abel, Kirstie Gordon, Gabriella Fontenla
West Indies head coach Shane Deitz had said that Chinelle Henry was close to playing their opening game. If fit, she can add heft to their lower-middle order as well as the bowling department.
West Indies (probable XI): Qiana Joseph, Hayley Matthews (capt), Shemaine Campbelle (wk), Deandra Dottin, Jahzara Claxton/Chinelle Henry, Jannillea Glasgow, Aaliyah Alleyne, Zaida James, Shawnisha Hector, Afy Fletcher, Karishma Ramharack
Players to watch:
Kathryn Bryce: The Scotland captain had a big role to play in their first win at this T20 World Cup. She scored a rapid half-century and picked up two wickets against Ireland. Bryce has picked up at least one wicket in 11 of the 12 T20Is she has played this year, apart from being consistent with the bat. Her experience of playing regularly in England’s domestic circuit could be key for Scotland against West Indies.
Deandra Dottin: She was at her brutal best in the last iteration of the T20 World Cup (strike rate 165.54, average 39.4, 12 sixes) but since the start of 2025, Dottin has only one T20I half-century at a strike rate of 122.84. Dottin had scored an unbeaten 15-ball 28 the last time she faced Scotland. Can she find her mojo back against them?
While Australia’s bowlers bulldozed Bangladesh, India’s batters made merry to show the batting-friendly nature of the surface in Leeds. Weather wise, the evening is likely to become cooler, with temperatures ranging from 19 to 22 degrees Celsius. There is no forecast of rain, even though it grew slightly overcast towards the start of Netherlands’ innings on Wednesday.
[Cricinfo]
Sports
Sooryavanshi to have parents with him on tour of Ireland and England
The BCCI has allowed Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s parents to accompany their son on his maiden India tour of Ireland and England in June and July to help the 15-year-old cope with any challenges that may arise. The board secretary Devajit Saikia said the BCCI would cover their expenses on the trip.
“You see, not all national teams at the senior level have a 14 or 15-year-old in their squad. After many decades, we have someone like Vaibhav Sooryavanshi,” Saikia told PTI. “At one point in time, it was Sachin Tendulkar who made it to the national team at such a young age. When such a young kid is part of the senior team, there are obviously a lot of issues that can crop up.
“Therefore, to make him comfortable and help him get used to an adult environment, where all the other players are above 18 years of age, and the team management members are also adults, we felt it would be helpful.
“We are doing this because we believe it will ease a lot of issues as far as Vaibhav is concerned.”
Sooryavanshi was picked in India’s T20I squad for the first time following a stellar IPL 2026 season in which he top-scored with 776 runs at a strike rate of 237.30, winning the Orange Cap, the MVP, and Emerging Player awards.
He is currently in Sri Lanka, representing India A for the first time, in a 50-over tri-series against Afghanistan A and Sri Lanka A, and became the focal point of an on field confrontation that involved physical contact during the game against the hosts.
While no official sanctions have been announced for any code of conduct breaches, the A-team tri-series falls within the jurisdiction of the host board – Sri Lanka Cricket – and not the ICC or BCCI. Saikia dismissed the notion of the BCCI taking any action.
“A lot of things are going on in the social media that BCCI is contemplating action, etc. Do you want BCCI to step into the domain of match referee?” Saikia said. “The BCCI is not an authority, we should not intrude into the area where the match referee and the umpires are the main persons who can take any decision regarding any incident that had happened in the playground.
“Whatever had happened, it was a part of the game, and the BCCI have no role to play. The role is of the match referee. If anything is going wrong, he will take a call, the umpires will take a call, and there is a system in place.”
Sooryavanshi has so far scored only 117 runs with a high score of 44 in four innings in the tri-series , but those runs have come at a strike rate of 153.94. India A have qualified for the final in Dambulla on June 21.
[Cricinfo]
Sports
Luis Diaz, Colombia defeat World Cup 2026 debutants Uzbekistan
Colombia opened their World Cup Group K campaign with a 3-1 victory over Uzbekistan at the Estadio Azteca on Wednesday, as Daniel Munoz, Luis Diaz and Jaminton Campaz struck to overcome a spirited second-half response from the tournament debutants.
Uzbekistan were disciplined for long periods under their Italian coach Fabio Cannavaro, but Colombia’s greater quality stood out in front of a crowd of over 80,000 on a cool, rain-tinged evening in Mexico City.
Colombia the Copa America runners-up, had early sights of goal through Jhon Arias and James Rodriguez, but Uzbekistan sat deep, scrapped gamely and waited for mistakes. Bekhruz Karimov almost profited when he burst forward, only for Jhon Lucumi to intervene before he could shoot.
Diaz had the clearest chance of the opening half when he struck the post, before Abdukodir Khusanov slid in after the winger had knocked the ball past him, taking out both the Colombian player and a pitchside cameraman who required medical treatment.
Uzbekistan’s resistance finally cracked in the 40th minute. Diaz gathered the ball after an attack had broken down and clipped a fine pass into the path of Munoz, who guided home a neat finish for his third international goal.
The large Colombian contingent erupted, their yellow shirts making the Azteca look and sound almost like home. Chants of “Vamos Colombia”, adapted from a Club America-style chorus, rolled around the ground, while Uzbekistan’s small band of supporters answered with drums of their own.

Uzbekistan improved after the break and equalised on the hour with the country’s first World Cup goal.
Dostonbek Khamdamov fed Eldor Shomurodov, whose shot from the right side of the box was saved low by Camilo Vargas. The goalkeeper could not hold it, however, and Abbosbek Fayzullaev nodded in the rebound from close range.

However, Uzbekistan’s joy lasted only five minutes.
Gustavo Puerta released Diaz in the 65th minute, and the forward side-footed across goal to restore Colombia’s lead. The crowd responded with chants of “Lucho, Lucho”.
Uzbekistan kept pushing. Akmal Mozgovoy shot narrowly off target in stoppage time, Karimov hit the bar with an effort from distance, and Azizbek Amonov had a shot blocked after Otabek Shukurov’s pass.
But Colombia had the final word, Campaz scoring in the ninth minute of stoppage time to settle a contest in which Nestor Lorenzo’s side had 15 attempts to Uzbekistan’s nine, and extended their strong recent group-stage record to seven wins in eight World Cup matches.
Colombia face DR Congo on Tuesday in Guadalajara, after Uzbekistan play Portugal on the same day in Houston.

[Aljazeera]
-
News7 days agoCIABOC summons Yoshitha over his participation in British Navy training programme
-
News4 days agoRelease of 2025 O/L results likely to be delayed
-
News7 days agoJustice Minister responds to social media claims he represented Easter Sunday ringleader
-
Sports4 days agoTharanga set for high-profile javelin clash in Ostrava
-
Features5 days agoPolitics of protected species
-
News3 days agoBeijing Capital Airlines to resume flights to Colombo signalling boost to tourism
-
News4 days agoTheft of USD 2.5 mn from Treasury: CoPF accused of complicity in NPP cover-up
-
News6 days agoCommonwealth lawyers urge Lanka to uphold rule of law
