Sports

JFK must be spinning in his grave

Published

2 years ago

2024/06/6

Rex Clementine in New York

There’s lot of excitement when you travel to the United States for the first time. You wonder what the free world has to offer you. New York is one of the most populated cities in the world. The city’s airport is named after former President John F. Kennedy. He was just 43 when he became President of United States beating incumbent Vice-President Richard Nixon in a closely contested election in 1960.

Kennedy is known for his charisma, compassion, optimism, efficiency and eloquence. The airport named after him is hardly anything but efficient. The flight to New York from Abu Dhabi is a long one. It takes you 15 hours. You intend to clear immigration quickly, but the queue is a long one. There are only four counters to serve passengers. One of those counters is reserved for wheelchair passengers and another one caters to passengers with young children. The rest of us have to go through the remaining two counters. It takes you a long three and half hours. Outrageous. Is it just one off? You ask locals. The answer is JFK airport is lousy. President Kennedy must be spinning in his grave.

Kennedy was a popular President. He was the first Catholic to become US President. His Presidency, however, was short lived; less than three years. His killing arouses suspicion and there are many conspiracy theories. Some believe Vice-President Lyndon B. Johnson, who succeeded Kennedy, was behind the assassination while some others believe a foreign government had a hand in his killing.

Many accuse Sri Lankan politicians of nepotism. But Kennedy, for all his charisma, served his family well too. He may not have appointed his brother-in-law as the Chairman of America’s national carrier, but he did appoint his brother as the Attorney General. Robert F. Kennedy (RFK) is his name. At the time of his appointment, he was only 35 and according to many, lacked experience in practicing law.

RFK himself ran for Presidency. He was on his way to receive the Democratic Party’s nomination for President after beating incumbent President Johnson in some primaries. RFK was quite popular too and would have won the election, but he was murdered in Los Angeles with just five months remaining for the election.

Currently, his son Robert F. Kennedy (jnr) is running for President as an independent candidate.

There’s a few grumblings about Sri Lanka’s travel arrangements and hotel arrangements for this World Cup. They were left stranded in Miami airport for several hours on their way to New York. The flight delay meant that their practice session prior to the game against South Africa was cancelled.

The team hotel in New York is quite a distance too. It takes one hour and 40 minutes and the players had to wake up at 5:30 so that they could be at the venue on time for the game which started at 10:30 in the morning.

Siddarth Monga, a leading cricket writer from India was upset by Sri Lanka’s plight. When Maheesh Theekshana came for the media interaction after the game he questioned about the challenges faced by the team. Theekshana shot back, ‘do you want me to be honest.’ Then he expressed the team’s disappointment. At the end of the briefing, Team Manager Mahinda Halangoda, a balanced man, was quick to tell the press, ‘Look guys, that’s not the reason why we lost.’

Some teams, however, are very lucky. Look at India. They are staying just 15 minutes away from the ground. They played their warm-up game prior to the World Cup in New York and three of their first-round games of the tournament are also in New York. That is quite a deal. India is in a position to dictate terms to the governing body of the game. The perks they enjoy at times are not just cricket. What Sri Lanka can do is to perhaps assess these itineraries when they are presented. Nothing much can be done about delayed flights, but surely, something can be done to avoid long travels on match days.

South Africa now stretched their unbeaten streak against Sri Lanka in ICC events to seven games starting from 2016.

While the loss was a bitter pill to swallow, you can not take anything away from the Proteas. Their planning was exceptional while execution of those plans were flawless.

You always admire the fast-bowling talents from South Africa. Allan Donald maybe the most decorated South Africa quick, but Sri Lankans will forever love Brett Schultz. This Anrich Nortje is another. He’s not young by any means. He’s 30-years-old and injuries have limited his opportunities in the game. But when fully fit, he’s a treat to watch. He hardly bowled a loose ball on Monday’s encounter and accounted for several big wickets. Sri Lankan batters were trying to take him on, but they were only fighting a losing battle.

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Sports

57th Annual Saints’ Quadrangular Tournament on Saturday and Sunday

Published

8 hours ago

2026/10/15

Priyan

The much-anticipated 57th Annual Saints’ Quadrangular Tournament which brings together four of Sri Lanka’s leading Catholic schools, St. Anthony’s College, Kandy, St. Benedict’s College, Colombo 13, St.Joseph’s College, Colombo 10, and St. Peter’s College, Colombo 04, for a weekend of spirited competition, camaraderie and nostalgia is scheduled to take place this weekend (weather permitting).

This year’s tournament is being hosted by the St. Peter’s College Old Boys’ Union (SPCOBU) during its Centenary year, marking 100 years since the Union was founded in 1927. The Centenary celebrates a century of service to the College and the Peterite community, under the theme “Honouring the Past, Strengthening the Present, Inspiring the Peterite of Tomorrow.”

The origins of the ‘Saints Quadrangular Tournament’ trace back to 1963, during the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of St. Benedict’s College. An open invitation was extended to schools across the country for a cricket tournament, and coincidentally, only the above three premier Catholic institutions joined

What began as a two-day cricket encounter has evolved into a multi-sport carnival that continues to embody the true spirit of sportsmanship and fraternity.

In 2002, the organizers introduced a 25-over Cricket Tournament for players aged 40 and above, allowing past cricketers to once again represent their beloved alma mater. Two years later, in 2004, Basketball was added to the lineup, enriching the event further given the strong basketball heritage of the four schools.

Continuing its evolution, 7-a-side Rugby was introduced in 2014, transforming the Saints’ Quadrangular into a vibrant sports carnival that now features three major sports across four tournaments namely Cricket, over 40 Cricket, Basketball, and Rugby.

This year the organizing committee has opened the doors to four sister schools as well. Good Sheperd Convent Kandy, Good Shepherd Convent Colombo, St Bridget’s Convent and Holy Family Convent Bambalapitiya, are to play a six a side ladies’ softball cricket tournament and a ladies’ basketball tournament.

Each sport at the Quadrangular carries its own prestigious silverware:

The Quadrangular Trophy is awarded to the winners of the two Cricket tournaments.

The Very Rev. Fr. Joe E. Wickramasinghe Trophy is presented to the Basketball champions.

The Ranjith Samarasekera Challenge Trophy is awarded to the Overall winners of the tournament.

Sports

President’s Balika win gold at All Island School Games

Published

19 hours ago

2026/10/15

Thilina Walpola

President’s Balika Nawala, won the girls’ hockey title at the All Island Schools Games, held recently at the Astro Turf, Reid Avenue. It was the second consecutive year the school had claimed the title.

Nethuli Dinethmi, who played a vital role in the team’s success, was named Best Player of the tournament.The victorious team is pictured here with the school’s officials, namely, H.P.M.P.D.Hasanthi Pathirathna, Principal, S.K.Tharsha Ranasinghe, Vice Principal, M.D.D. Aloka Dissanayake, Teacher in Charge of Sports, R.P.D. Dilrukshi, Teacher in Charge of Sports and Chathura Kalum Rupasinghe (Coach).

(Pic by Thushara Athapaththu)

Sports

Sorry state of Sri Lanka’s T20 cricket

Published

19 hours ago

2026/10/15

Thilina Walpola

by Rex Clementine

Sri Lanka were once pioneers in limited overs cricket, setting the bar so high that the rest of the world was left scrambling to catch up. And mind you, this was not confined to the 50 over format, where Sri Lanka tore up the coaching manuals, embraced an unconventional brand of cricket and took the world by storm.

Even in T20 cricket, despite not possessing an abundance of power hitters, Sri Lanka punched well above their weight.

Clever improvisation, fearless innovation and a willingness to back unorthodox talent helped them make the cricketing world eat humble pie. Fast forward to the present, however, and the picture is anything but rosy. Sri Lanka’s T20 cricket is in a sorry state, and there is no hiding the mountain of work ahead.

In Pakistan, their shortcomings have been laid bare, with the team repeatedly found wanting and left high and dry.

Successive administrations have tried every trick in the book to arrest the slide. Power hitting coaches have been brought in, psychologists engaged, players given unrestricted access to franchise leagues and emerging talent afforded regular exposure. Yet, for all these efforts, Sri Lanka’s players, particularly the batters, have struggled to raise the bar.

The series defeat to Pakistan was Sri Lanka’s fifth this year. Add to that the disappointments at the World Cup and the Asian Games and the picture becomes even more depressing. True, Sri Lanka returned from Japan with a bronze medal, but India provided a brutal reminder of the widening gulf between the haves and the have nots.

So, where do Sri Lanka go from here?

The Cricket Committee would do well to pick the brains of captains and coaches who have cracked the T20 code in recent years. There is no shame in learning from those who have mastered the format. The challenge is to identify a blueprint for su ccess and see how best those ideas can be adapted to Sri Lankan cricket.

Head coach Gary Kirsten himself has worked with successful franchises around the world. Perhaps he should be given a free hand to bring in specialist expertise if he believes that is what the team needs.

For all the disappointments in T20 cricket, fielding had remained one area where Sri Lanka could still hold their heads high. Alarmingly, even that department is beginning to unravel. The wheels appear to be coming off in a discipline that was once a hallmark of Sri Lankan cricket.

There were, however, a few encouraging signs in the final game against Pakistan. The manner in which Kusal Mendis went about his business was a breath of fresh air. The Sri Lankan captain struck at an impressive 181, combining clean hitting with the sort of innovation that has been conspicuously absent from the team’s batting.

Kamindu Mendis, too, showed signs of returning to form and Sri Lankan supporters will be hoping the pair can carry that momentum into the triangular ODI competition, also featuring England, which gets underway later this week.

Sri Lanka badly missed Pathum Nissanka, their highest ranked T20I batter at number nine in the ICC rankings. His absence robbed the batting line up of much needed quality and consistency. To compound matters, a troublesome hamstring has left his participation in the ODI leg uncertain as well.

The occasional flash of brilliance may offer some comfort, but it cannot disguise the larger malaise. Sri Lanka were once the trendsetters in limited overs cricket. Today, they are struggling to keep pace with the rest. Unless there is a serious rethink, the gap will only grow wider.