The Japan Premier League (JPL) T20 competition is cricket’s unlikely outpost – a self-sustaining though struggling-to-survive tournament far away from cricket’s traditional centres. It’s on a growth path just over a decade into its existence, starting to connect local players to those outside, and looking to create a cricketing community in the country.

It was founded in 2015 with four regions – North, South, East and West Kanto (Tokyo region) – in the fray, with games held at the home venues of each of the teams. That model was scrapped owing to low turnouts, and the tournament has since been played at one or the other venue, while Kansai (Osaka region) has come in as the fifth team.

In 2026, the JPL will be a three-day competition – May 2 to 4 – with 12 games at the Sano International Cricket Ground. All the buzz in the lead-up is about the participation of former Sri Lanka captain Dimuth Karunaratne, BBL winner Josh Brown, and Nepal allrounder Karan KC.

A stubborn knock of 59 runs by Praveen Rukunayake helped Trinity College recover from a disastrous start to post 173 runs against Nalanda College on day one of their Under 19 Division I Tier ‘A’ quarter-final played at the BOI Ground on Thursday.

‎Trinity suffered an early setback when open batsman Puleesha Thilakarathne and one-drop Mahendra Abeysinghe were dismissed in quick succession with the scoreboard yet to move. The early blows left Trinity struggling, and they continued to lose wickets at regular intervals as Nalanda’s bowlers maintained pressure.

‎With the innings in danger of collapsing completely, number eight batsman Praveen Rukunayake produced a determined effort, compiling a valuable 59 runs. His fighting knock helped Trinity recover from the early damage and guide them to a modest but competitive total of 173.

‎For Nalanda, Malsha Fernando led the bowling attack with an impressive spell, claiming four wickets for 49 runs, while Hasitha Rathnayake provided solid support with three wickets for 38.

‎In reply, Nalanda too found scoring difficult against a disciplined Trinity bowling attack. At the close of play on day one, Nalanda were struggling at 98 for five wickets, leaving the quarter-final finely poised heading into the second day.

‎‎Kumarasiri’s 11-wicket haul sets up thrilling finish

‎‎The Under 19 Division I Tier B cricket quarter-final between Sri Dharmaloka College, Kelaniya and Sri Sumangala College, Panadura was finely balanced after an eventful second day which saw 20 wickets tumble at Kuruvita on Thursday.

‎At stumps, Sri Sumangala were 59 for two wickets chasing a modest target of 156 runs, leaving the Panadura outfit needing fewer than 100 runs with eight wickets in hand when play resumes on the final day.

‎The biggest question heading into the decider will be whether the wicket continues to behave the same way it did on the second day when bowlers dominated proceedings throughout the day.

‎Sri Dharmaloka, who secured a useful first innings lead of 67 runs, failed to capitalise on the advantage as they collapsed dramatically in their second innings. Left-arm spinner Mevindu Kumarasiri produced a match-turning spell claiming six wickets to complete an outstanding match haul of 11 wickets.

‎Kumarasiri received excellent support from Methum Fernando as the pair shared all ten wickets between them while Sri Dharmaloka were bowled out for just 89 runs. Only Tharusha Mihiranga showed some resistance with a top score of 24.

‎Sri Dharmaloka appeared steady after moving past the 50-run mark for the loss of four wickets, but their middle and lower order folded quickly within the space of 14 overs to hand Sri Sumangala a realistic chance of victory.

‎Chasing 156 runs, Sri Sumangala made a confident start despite losing an early wicket. Opener Vidura Basuru played an aggressive knock of 33 runs which included three fours and a six and shared a valuable 41-run stand for the second wicket with Sandeepa Wijeratne.

‎Basuru was eventually dismissed by Koshitha Adithya, leaving Wijeratne unbeaten on 17 at the close of play with the match delicately poised.

‎Earlier in the day, Sri Dharmaloka’s bowlers staged a strong fightback to dismiss Sri Sumangala for 144 runs in reply to their first innings total of 211.

‎Tishan Nipun led the attack with impressive figures of 4 for 43 while Sathindu Praboda provided strong support with 3 for 44 as the pair shared seven wickets between them. Koshitha Adithya (2/27) and Mewan Randeepana picked up the remaining wickets.

‎With Sri Sumangala needing under 100 runs and Sri Dharmaloka requiring eight wickets, an exciting finish is on the cards when the teams return for the final day. (RF)

Sri Lanka Cricket will convene an Extraordinary General Meeting in April, with a clutch of resolutions set to be tabled before the membership for approval. SLC Secretary Bandula Dissanayake told Telecom Asia Sport that the EGM is pencilled in for April 6, 2026.

According to Dissanayake, a seasoned hand in cricket administration, while a few tweaks to the constitution will be up for discussion, the headline act on the agenda is the introduction of new playing conditions for SLC-conducted domestic tournaments.

At present, promotion and relegation in the top two domestic competitions are decided purely on performances in the three-day format. But SLC is now looking to change the field settings, aiming to give all three formats a fair crack of the whip.

“We want to make white ball cricket more competitive,” Dissanayake explained. “What we have seen is teams loading up for the three day competition and then taking their foot off the pedal when the one-day tournament comes around. By June, several players are off to England for league cricket and that leaves the white-ball competitions short changed.”

“This is part of a long term blueprint to ensure we are producing players who can hold their own in white ball cricket,” he added, signalling a shift in approach.

Under the proposed system, performances across all three formats will now count towards promotion and relegation, rather than just the red-ball game. However, the longer format will still call the shots, carrying a 51% weightage, while the one-day competition accounts for 25% and T20s for 24%.

In white-ball tournaments, where knockout cricket comes into play, quarter-finalists and semi-finalists will earn equal points, a move aimed at levelling the playing field and rewarding consistency.

At the business end, the side finishing with the lowest tally will face the drop. In the event of a tie on points, the three-day performances will act as the tie-breaker, a nod to the traditional format still being the backbone of the domestic structure.

SLC has been rolling up its sleeves to tidy up domestic cricket in recent years. Not too long ago, the First Class scene resembled an overcrowded outfield, with 24 teams holding status, a factor many felt diluted standards.

The introduction of a relegation system has since trimmed the fat, with underperforming teams losing their First Class status. Even heavyweights like SSC, boasting a dressing room full of Sri Lanka stars, found themselves on the wrong side of the cut last season. But like a champion side refusing to throw in the towel, they bounced back to reclaim their First Class status for the next season.

At present, Sri Lanka’s First Class competition has been streamlined to 14 teams.

https://www.telecomasia.net