Sports
Eight-try Kandy clout Sri Lions before welcoming them into A Division rugby
By A Special Sports Correspondent
Kandy Sports Club led by utility player Srinath Sooriyabandara started the inter-club league tournament for the calendar year 2024/25 with a bang by beating new entrants to domestic rugby, Sri Lions SC, by 61 points to 14 at Nittawela Grounds yesterday (December 15).
Kandy SC faced some resistance from the visiting team in the first half. But the host team’s power and pace combined proved too much for Sri Lions as the game stretched into the second half. If Sri Lions SC thought that a first half performance of producing two tries and trailing 27-14 at half time was commendable, they were proved wrong as Kandy raked in five tries in the second half to bury them. The winners collected their points through eight tries, six conversions and three penalties while Sri Lions SC responded with two converted tries.
Kandy SC’s forwards were on the rampage and destroyed the Sri Lions SC ‘eight’; especially in the scrums. The host team’s second row forward Chathura Soysa was outstanding both in the set pieces and in the loose and even scored the team’s seventh try, late into the second half.
The other try scorers for Kandy SC in the second half were Tharinda Ratwatte (1), Dahan Wickremarachchi (1), Ethan Schneider Loos (1) and Tharindu Chathuranga (1). Fly half Ratwatte was outstanding with his kicking boots, slotting in six conversions and three penalties. Kandy SC hooker Dilshan Fareed was also outstanding for the winners and produced one of the three first half tries for Kandy SC. Scrum half Heshan Jansen, Dinal Ekanayake and Kavindu Perera also stood out for the winners.
Sri Lions SC showed guts and purpose in their first outing in A Division rugby. The side led by Kevin Dixon, despite losing, won the hearts of an appreciative Sunday crowd at Nittawela for trying so hard. Much is expected of this new side this season.
Many thought that referee Suranga Arunashantha controlled this hotly-contested game between Kandy SC and Sri Lions SC rather well.
On Friday (December 13) Sri Lanka Air Force Sports Club (SLAF) did pretty well in their opening fixture of the Inter-club league rugby tournament for the calendar year 2024/25 by defeating CH&FC by 36 points to 15.
The winners collected their points through five tries, four conversions and a penalty while the visitors to Ratmalana responded with two tries, one conversion and a penalty.
On Saturday (December 14) Havelocks Sports Club (Havies) had to grind hard to beat Navy Sports Club in their opening game for the season. Though Havies were able to convert pressure into points whenever they applied themselves the game turned out to be a ding dong battle to the very end. Samuel Maduwantha and Jayathu Rajaratne dazzled for the winners, but Havies were checked time and again in the game by Navy who even took control of the proceedings briefly in the first half. Denuwan Wickremaratne was a cut above the rest with his power-play while Dimuth Perera also stood out with a touch down. Havies collected their points through six tries, five conversions and a penalty while Navy responded with three tries, a conversion and two penalties.
The game between Army SC and Police SC was called off due to heavy rain and fading light. The tournament’s officials and the referee were forced to decide against resuming the game after half time as a result of the adverse weather conditions. The match will be resumed from the point at which it was stopped on a future date. At half time Army was leading 8-5.
The tournament is conducted by Sri Lanka Rugby the controlling body for rugby union in Sri Lanka and sponsored by Mastercard. The tournament will run for nine weeks after which teams will be pooled into the Cup and Plate Championships keeping with their performances.
Sri Lanka Cricket is laying the groundwork for a new chapter in the island’s cricketing history, with plans to stage day-night Test matches at the historic Sinhalese Sports Club ground.
The installation of floodlights at the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) has now been completed and SLC Treasurer Sujeewa Godaliyadda said the project goes well beyond the immediate demands of the upcoming T20 World Cup.
SLC funded the floodlight project at a cost of Rs. 1.8 billion, with SSC set to host five matches of the showpiece event. The other venues for the tournament will be the Pallekele International Stadium and the R. Premadasa Stadium.
Speaking to journalists during a media tour to unveil the project, Godaliyadda said the long-term vision was for SSC to one day host day-night Test matches. While pink-ball Tests have gained traction globally in recent years, Sri Lanka are yet to stage one at home and the indication is that SSC will be the venue for the country’s first-ever day-night Test.
SSC ground will be leased for a certain amount of days a year to SLC for conducting training and games. It is part of the agreement that the board undertook to develop the ground.
Beyond the floodlights, the first phase of development also included upgraded dressing rooms and a new VIP viewing area. A second phase, scheduled to begin after the World Cup, will focus on expanding the venue’s capacity. SLC plans to upgrade SSC into a 30,000-seat stadium, a move the board believes will strengthen Sri Lanka’s case when bidding for future ICC events, including women’s and Under-19 tournaments.
SSC celebrated its 125th anniversary last year and has been the stage for many of Sri Lankan cricket’s defining moments. The ground hosted matches during the 1996 World Cup and was the scene of the world-record partnership of 624 runs between Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene against South Africa in 2006.
Alongside SSC, the Colombo Cricket Club Ground, just across the road and the P. Sara Oval are also undergoing upgrades.
SLC is meanwhile pressing ahead with plans to build a new international-standard cricket ground in Jaffna and has identified several other locations for future venues, as demand for international facilities continues to grow.
With the T20 World Cup around the corner, Sri Lanka are getting their act together with some last moment preparations. A three-match home series against Pakistan next week in Dambulla is an opportunity to find answers to some nagging questions.
Over the past 24 months, Sri Lanka have been on a steady upward curve, rebuilding brick by brick. The only loose tile has been the T20 format. A home World Cup, though, offers the perfect chance to paper over the cracks.
At present, too much seems to rest on the broad shoulders of Pathum Nissanka. The opener has been motoring smoothly across formats and last September added another feather to his cap by becoming only the fourth Sri Lankan to score a T20I hundred. That it came against world champions India spoke volumes, a knock that virtually fast-tracked him to an IPL deal. When Nissanka fires, Sri Lanka purr; when he doesn’t, the engine splutters.
Kusal Mendis has struck up a productive opening partnership with Nissanka, giving Sri Lanka brisk starts. It is the middle order, however, that has repeatedly failed to carry the baton. Kusal Janith Perera, with a truckload of experience, remains the lynchpin. His recent dismissals have tested patience, but he is still the side’s leading batter and in a couple of overs can flip a game on its head.
Charith Asalanka endured a lean patch in T20 cricket, despite being prolific in the 50-over format. Relieved of captaincy duties, he now has the luxury of focusing solely on his batting.
Dasun Shanaka has been handed the captaincy and he has to justify his place in the side as a player. Batting where he does, Shanaka’s brief is clear: less about compiling scores and more about providing the late-innings punch, the kind of death-overs fireworks that can swing momentum in a hurry.
The selectors have also rolled the dice by drafting in Dhananjaya de Silva, hoping he can bat through the innings. Slotted in at number three, a role previously trialled, his adaptability will be closely watched. His off-spin adds another string to the bow, though Sri Lanka are hardly short of part-time options in that department.
Bowling, whether pace or spin, has largely held firm. It is the batting that has repeatedly let the side down, leaving bowlers to defend modest totals with little margin for error.
This three-match series, then, is Sri Lanka’s chance to shuffle the pack, experiment with combinations and get their balance right. The squad has had a handful of warm-up games in Colombo before heading to Dambulla on Friday evening to begin full training. The opening match is scheduled for Wednesday, followed by games on Friday and Sunday.
In a welcome off-field gesture, Sri Lanka Cricket has announced that profits from the series will be channelled towards rebuilding the lives of those affected by the recent cyclone. A three-match T20 series against India in August has also been announced for the same cause.
by Rex Clementine ✍️
Kagiso Rabada, who returned to action on New Year’s Eve after almost ten weeks on the sidelines with a rib injury, will lead South Africa’s attack at the men’s T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka in February-March. Rabada, who took 2 for 48 on comeback for MI Cape Town (MICT) in the SA20, has been named alongside five other quicks: Anrich Nortje, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Lungi Ngidi and Kwena Maphaka complete South Africa’s pace battery.
Maphaka and Bosch are among seven players who will appear at a World Cup for the first time. The others are batters Dewald Brevis, Tony de Zorzi and Jason Smith, and allrounders George Linde and Donovan Ferreira.
South Africa will be led by regular T20 skipper Aiden Markram and will have only seven members of the squad that reached the final of the 2024 T20 World Cup. Quinton de Kock is back at the top of the order after making himself available for South Africa in October, while David Miller, Keshav Maharaj, Jansen, Rabada and Nortje were all in the XI that lost to India in Barbados in June 2024.
Of those not in the squad, Heinrich Klaasen has retired from international cricket while Reeza Hendricks, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Ottneil Baartman, Gerald Coetzee, Bjorn Fortuin and Tabraiz Shamsi have missed out. All eight of these players are currently in action in T20 franchise leagues, with the first seven at the SA20 and Shamsi at the ILT20 and then the BBL.
Among the biggest talking points in the current squad is the addition of de Zorzi, who has not played in a month, since injuring his hamstring in an ODI against India in Raipur. De Zorzi had been in good form prior to that match, and is seen as someone who is suited to subcontinent conditions. He is part of the Durban’s Super Giants (DSG) squad in the SA20 but has yet to play a game.
Tony is recovering well,” Moroney said. “He’s working with a medical team and he will be fit and ready to go when we play the West Indies. He’s probably slotting in at number three.”
Moroney also explained the selectors’ thinking behind leaving out Rickelton and Stubbs.
“It was a big decision between Quinny de Kock and Ryan Rickelton and ultimately we’ve opted to go with Quinny de Kock in that opening berth along with Aiden Markram,” he said.
“On Stubbs, in theory what we’ve really looked for there is to make sure that we have that attacking middle order where the left-handed David Miller slots in for us ideally and then with [Dewald] Brevis and [Donovan] Ferreira complementing him on either side is our general plan.
“That’s what we’ve opted for with Stubbs not included in this tour, in this World Cup.”
Smith, who only has five international caps to his name, is also something of a surprise inclusion. Smith has recently enhanced his reputation as a finisher after an unbeaten 68 off 19 balls to send Dolphins into the playoff of the CSAT20 Challenge, and the 14-ball 41 for MICT against DSG in the SA20 opener. Smith also offers a seam-bowling option, though he has not bowled since October as he recovers from a niggle. MICT coach Robin Peterson confirmed Smith may start bowling towards the end of the competition.
“Jason brings us a lot of versatility and is able to bat nearly anywhere in the order,” Moroney said. “He also gives us that opportunity to go in in the powerplay. That’s something that we were looking at, to get that player movement, to give the coach the opportunity to be strategic and slot batters into different positions in the batting order. It definitely gives us that versatility that we look for.”
Left-arm quick Nandre Burger, Moroney said, was unlucky to miss out. Burger sustained a hamstring injury recently, but it wasn’t this as much as competition for slots that led to his non-selection, with Nortje selected instead.
“Nandre Burger was part of the selection [conversation] and we’ve opted to go with Anrich Nortje instead of a player like Nandre. He’s recovering and everything indicates that he’ll be fully fit, but from a selection point of view we’ve gone with Anrich.”
In the spin department, South Africa have stuck to their two left-arm spinners in Maharaj and Linde, while Markram and Ferreira (who also keeps wicket) will be the offspin options. The international career of left-arm wristspinner Shamsi, who recently won a case for a no-objection certificate against Cricket South Africa and is no longer centrally contracted, appears to be over.
The T20 World Cup will be the first white-ball tournament under all-format coach Shukri Conrad, who took over the limited-overs sides in July last year. His regular support staff of Ashwell Prince (batting coach), Piet Botha (bowling coach) and Kruger van Wyk (fielding coach) will be enhanced by Albie Morkel as a specialist T20 consultant. Morkel is currently part of the management team of Joburg Super Kings at the SA20.
All South Africa’s players will be involved in the SA20 for most of this month. They will then host West Indies for three T20Is before heading to India for the T20 World Cup. Their campaign starts against Canada on February 9. South Africa will also play Afghanistan, New Zealand and the UAE in the group stage.
South Africa squad for the T20 World Cup:
Aiden Markram (capt), Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Quinton de Kock (wk), Tony de Zorzi, Donovan Ferreira, Marco Jansen, George Linde, Keshav Maharaj, Kwena Maphaka, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Kagiso Rabada, Jason Smith
(Cricinfo)
Teachers’ unions ‘ready to bring govt. to its knees’
Education Ministry drops idea of extending school hours
SLRC to disburse Rs 2420 mn in relief funds to 28,000 families
Elephant deaths spiral as law enforcement fails on ground – Wildlife DG
Electricity Consumers’ Association accuses govt. of attempting to rip off power consumers
Talks on UNP-SJB alliance continue
‘Dates have the highest sugar content to fight Coronavirus’
Sunday Island 27 December – Headlines
#SundayIsland 17th December – Headlines
Sunday Island – 28th March
Sunday Island Headlines – 21 March
Sunday Island – 21st February – Headlines
-
Sports6 days agoGurusinha’s Boxing Day hundred celebrated in Melbourne
-
News4 days agoLeading the Nation’s Connectivity Recovery Amid Unprecedented Challenges
-
Features5 days agoIt’s all over for Maxi Rozairo
-
News1 day agoHealth Minister sends letter of demand for one billion rupees in damages
-
Opinion3 days agoRemembering Douglas Devananda on New Year’s Day 2026
-
News5 days agoDr. Bellana: “I was removed as NHSL Deputy Director for exposing Rs. 900 mn fraud”
-
News4 days agoDons on warpath over alleged undue interference in university governance
-
Features5 days agoRebuilding Sri Lanka Through Inclusive Governance