Sports
Nadeesha overtakes Menaka with third fastest time in SL history
Rajitha takes legend Wimaladasa’s spot
by Reemus Fernando
Despite the absence of favourites, veteran sprinter Nadeesha Ramanayake and Rajitha Rajakaruna produced outstanding feats in the women’s and men’s 400 metres respectively at the Selection Trial held at Diyagama on Tuesday.
Ramanayake who played second fiddle to Thrushi Karunaratne at the last trial held in March came up with her personal best performance to win the women’s 400 metres on Tuesday. Despite not being challenged right throughout, Ramanayake could stop the clock at 52.80 seconds, the third fastest time in SL history behind Olympian Damayanthi Dharsha’s 51.05 and Chandrika Subashini’s 52.36.
Until Tuesday, Asian Athletics Championship medallist Menaka Wickramasinghe’s 52.93 seconds was the third fastest time by a Sri Lankan woman over the quarter mile. Ramanayake’s closest rivals failed to clock sub 54 seconds.
However, the history-making performance was 15 milliseconds shy of the Asian Games qualifying standard set by Sri Lanka Athletics. The fact that she accomplished the time without being challenged would force selectors to rethink the criteria set for the quadrennial event.
The Selection Meet was held to pick teams for three Asian events, the Asian Games, Asian Athletics Championships and the Junior Asian Athletics Championships.
Ramanayake, competing at the last Asian Athletics Championships in Doha joined Upamali Rathnakumari, Nimali Liyanarachchi and Dilshi Kumarasinghe to establish the current women’s 4×400 metres national record. She was yet to produce a sub 53 seconds then.
Like in the women’s 400 metres, the corresponding men’s event too was without the favourites. Leading contenders Kalinga Kumarage and Aruna Dharshana did not feature in the major selection event. Despite their absence, as many as four athletes clocked sub 47 seconds with Rajitha Rajakaruna piping Pabasara Niku in the last few metres to win in a time of 46.20 seconds. That massive personal best makes him the sixth fastest man in history over the 400 metres.
Rajakaruna can now occupy a slot held by 70s legend W. Wimaladasa, who was once the national record holder of the event. That performance also reflects the massive improvement in the standards in Asia. Incidentally, when Wickramesinghe Wimaladasa clocked 46.21 seconds at the Tehran Asian Games he not only won gold but that feat became the Games record. But today the medal-winning standard in the Asian region has improved to such heights that Sri Lanka Athletics has set 45.70 seconds as the qualifying standard (the average bronze-winning standard of the last three games).
However, despite not reaching the qualifying standard, Rajakaruna can still make it to the Asian Games as the impressive 400 metres performances of Kalinga Kumarage and Aruna Dharshana during the last month and the feats of the likes of Rajakaruna, Pabasara Niku, Pasindu Kodikara and Dinuka Deshan augur well for the formation of a men’s 4×400 metres team.
96TH BATTLE OF THE MAROONS
Open bat Nethul Edirimanne rose to the big occasion wth an unbeaten century as Ananda College posted 325 for five wickets at stumps on day one of the 96th Battle of the Maroons Big Match at the SSC ground on Friday.
Decidng to bat first, Ananda found Edirimanne holding their top order together as he built up useful partnerships in each session.
Edirimanne had just a single half century against his name this season and Ananda’s entire batting line up had just two centuries. Edirimanne batted through to the close of play and remained unbeaten on 150.
It was not only his highest score but also the highest score by an Anandian.
He had faced 254 balls by stumps and had stroked 14 fours and a six in his knock.
The days highest partnership -126 runs for the fifth wicket- was put on by Edirimanne and Ovin Perera who scored 53 runs before being given out lbw to Dunitha Anusara.
Perera scored six fours.
While Danindu Sellapperuma (33) and Sharada Jayaratne (37) contributed with 30s, Himira Kudagama made 24. Skipper Kithma Widanapathirana’s dismissal for two runs was the only dissapointment for Ananda on an otherwise fruiful opening day.
For Nalanda Osanda Pamuditha took two wickets.
by Reemus Fernando
Long jumper Madushani Herath and former national javelin record holder Sumedha Ranasinghe were among half a dozen athletes to have reached qualifying standads to make the national pool on day one of the Athletic Trials held at Diyagama today.
Former Nannapurawa MV, Bibila athlete Herath cleared a distance of 6.32 metres to win the long jump contest, some 18 centimeters clear of the target set for the first trial.
Distance runner Rasara Wijesuriya was more than one minute faster than the qualifying standard set for the 10,000 metres as she stopped the clock in 34:03.29 minutes. Her closest rival Nayana Sewwandi finished more than two minutes later.
Olympian Sumedha Ranasinghe cleared 75.50 meters (qualifying mark -75.00m) and was joined by R. Rathusan in that club with a distance of 75.36.
Minoli Fernando in the women’s high jump (1.76 m) and K.T. Mathumeethan in the men’s hammer throw (50.42m) were among the other athletes to make an impact reaching qualifying standars.
The selection trial is held with the aim of forming a national pool for this year’s Asian Games and the Commonwealth Games.
While Sri Lankan cricket begins another cycle of seething introspection, there is still business to be concluded in Colombo and Pallekele. New Zealand helped turn the home crowd against their own on Wednesday night and will be looking to confirm their own passage to the semi-finals – for the fourth time in the last five T20 World Cups – when they return to Khettarama to take on England, who are already through.
Looking on anxiously will be Pakistan, who shared the points with New Zealand when their Super Eight encounter was washed out and must consequently cling to the possibility of England making it three wins from three and then making up the net run rate deficit in victory over Sri Lanka (with the results margin from both games cumulatively needing to be around 0 runs, assuming the team batting first makes 180).
England’s campaign so far has turned the phrase “winning ugly” into an art form; the two-wicket triumph over Pakistan that sealed their semi-final spot was so defiantly slapdash it might well end up being nominated for the Turner Prize. The quest for the “perfect game” continues. Certainly, there is no danger of them peaking too early.
If there is one unsettling blot on their copybook so far, it is the continuing travails of Jos Buttler. His haunted look after dismissal for a fourth single-innings score in a row against Pakistan told the story of a horror campaign, but there is no sense yet that England are ready to pull the rug on their greatest white-ball batter of all time.
New Zealand are more in need of the win – even if a close-fought loss might do – but, after a dip at the 2024 World Cup when they were edged out in the first group stage by Afghanistan, they look back to their best as a high-functioning tournament side that always makes the best of the resources available to them.
They came into this World Cup with several players battling injury and illness; Michael Bracewell, a key allrounder in subcontinental conditions, was then ruled out without playing a game. But they have won four out of five completed games with Bracewell’s replacement, the unheralded Cole McConchie, one of stars of their come-from-behind win over Sri Lanka – a game in which their five spin-bowling options trumped the four that England are able to call on (assuming the cut to Jacob Bethell’s bowling hand has healed).
No one should be surprised to see them get the job done again. A New Zealand win would put them top of the group, and also end the uncertainty around the semi-final venues, with Mumbai and Kolkata locked in. Pakistan will be hoping desperately it’s not that straightforward.
While Buttler’s lack of form remains the main talking point, Harry Brook did everything he could to make sure the headlines were about him against Pakistan. At the prompting of Brendon McCullum, Brook elevated himself to No. 3 in the order – having dropped down to No. 5 before the World Cup – and the immediate results were spectacular. Having only done the job a handful of times before for Yorkshire and Northern Superchargers, and never at international level, he made full use of the opportunity for a fast start during the powerplay and was consequently more settled when it came to navigating middle-overs spin (his T20 weak spot). A maiden T20I hundred, from just 50 balls, suggests he should be locked in at first drop for the foreseeable.
Kiwis are all about the collective, with handy performance so far sprinkled around, but one area that might be cause for a smidge of concern is the New Zealand middle order. Partly that is down to the top four being so effective – openers Tim Seifert and Finn Allen are their leading run-scorers, closely followed by Glenn Phillips – and partly the abandoned game against Pakistan, which meant they went eight days without playing. Daryl Mitchell and Mark Chapman have both batted three times and missed the chance for middle time against Sri Lanka, before Mitchell Santner and McConchie produced the vital rescue act. New Zealand have discussed pushing Santner higher, but will likely stick with the incumbents in the expectation they will come good (or not be needed).
England have played the same XI five games in a row and – unless they were to suddenly change their thinking on Buttler, and parachute Ben Duckett in to open – seem likely to stick with that formula. Rehan Ahmed, Josh Tongue and Luke Wood are in the wings, in the event that they wish to test their bench strength.
England: (probable) Phil Salt, Jos Buttler (wk), Harry Brook (capt), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Liam Dawson, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid.
After adapting on the fly to seal such a comprehensive win over the home side, New Zealand are also expected to keep the same balance, with the two quicks and five spin options at their disposal. Jimmy Neesham could return if conditions demand another seam option.
New Zealand: (probable) Tim Seifert (wk), Finn Allen, Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Daryl Mitchell, Mark Chapman, Mitchell Santner (capt), Cole McConchie, Matt Henry, Ish Sodhi, Lockie Ferguson.
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