Sports
Rajakaruna wants Dharshana to reach personal best at Olympics
How SL athletes benefit from repechage round
by Reemus Fernando
Sri Lanka’s two track athletes will look to make the most of the repechage round when track and field events of the Paris Olympics commence on August 1.
Sprinter Aruna Dharshana and 800 metres specialist Tharushi Karunaratne will be looking to gain the maximum when the repechage round comes to effect at the Olympics.
“Our goal is to achieve the personal best performance. That is the realistic goal that we can set. Knowing that there is a repechage round will help athletes not only to stay in the spotlight but also to achieve their realistic goals,” Dharshana’s coach Asanka Rajakaruna said speaking to The Island from Paris on Tuesday.
Dharahana who is ranked 46th among 48 athletes who have qualified for the 400 metres has a personal best feat of 45.30 seconds. The top athletes vying for semi-final spots have all run sub 45 seconds during the qualifying period for Paris Olympics.
Karunaratne is ranked 44th among 48 athletes who have reached qualifying standards or received universality places for the women’s 800 metres. The Asian Games gold medallist has not come closer to matching her personal best feat of 2:00.66 seconds this year.
On such a back drop both Dharshana and Karunaratne are likely to benefit from the repechage round.
The Paris 2024 Olympic Games introduced a new format of qualifying for semi-finals with the repechage round in the track events from the 200m to the 1500m.
There will be no fastest qualifiers in terms of time in events. The athletes who do not qualify from heats will get a second opportunity to qualify when they compete in the repechage round, which was introduced in 2022.
According to the new format every event will have four rounds, the preliminary, the repechage round, the semifinals and finals respectively.
Paris Olympics will see every athlete run at least two races, except in the 100 metres and events above 1500 metres. In the 100m athletes will only race in the preliminary, semifinal and final.
Under 19 Limited Overs Cricket
by Reemus Fernando
St. Joseph’s registered crushing nine wickets victory over Gurukula in the Under 19 Division I Tier ‘A’ limited overs tournament semi-final at BRC ground on Monday.
The Joes needed just 13 overs to seal a comfortable nine wickets victory after they rattled Gurukula for scanty 61 runs. Paceman Manasa Madubashana (3/21) and spinner Yenula Dewthusa (4/13) shared seven wickets between them to restrict Gurukula to 61 runs. Denura Dimansith and number ten batsman Iduwara Oshada were the only batsmen to reach double figures as Gurukula toiled for 41 overs to reach their eventual total.
In their essay the Joes lost their first wicket for five runs. But the second wicket pair of Kithmin dr Silva and Abishek Jayaweera kept their wickets intact to win with many overs to spare.
Scores
Gurukula
61 all out in 40.4 overs (Denura Dimansith 12; Manasa Madubashana 3/21, Yenula Dewthusa 4/13)
St. Joseph’s
63 for 1 in 13 overs (Kithmin de Silva 22n.o., Abishek Jayaweera 27n.o.)
RCB’s loss to UP Warriorz on Saturday night may have smothered the passage into the playoffs for both MI and GG, but there’s still an extra edge to this contest as the top spot is still not booked.
Giants have to win to entertain thoughts of finishing at No. 1. Mumbai have a game in hand and can get there even if they lose on today, but it would then mean a three-way tie should they beat RCB. They would want to avoid this logjam, having been in a similar position last year and then going down to RCB in the Eliminator.
GG are on a bull run, having won more games (three) over the past week than they did all of last season. But there’s one thing they haven’t done yet: beat MI, who have a 5-0 record against them in the tournament’s short history. If that wasn’t pressure enough, they now face the challenge of playing Harmanpreet Kaur’s MI in Mumbai, at the Brabourne Stadium, where they are yet to lose a single game.
They have been the most explosive side in the middle-overs, courtesy Ash Gardner and new (old) signing Deandra Dottin. But MI have the best economy (6.6 runs an over) and average (17.9) in this phase. This battle will form the crux of the contest.
The return to form of Harleen Deol, instrumental in GG’s stunning chase of 178 the other night against Delhi Capitals, bodes well. Kashvee Gautam’s all-round prowess and Beth Mooney’s unshackling at the top make them look more dangerous.
MI look equally strong but have changed their batting combinations because of Yastika Bhatia’s prolonged lean run. In their previous game, Amelia Kerr was promoted to open with Hayley Mathews. It remains to be seen if this will be their plan at the back end too. If it is, it could mean a bigger batting responsibility for S Sajana and Amanjot Kaur in the middle order.
Dayalan Hemalatha’s poor run at the top of the order may force a change for GG. Simran Shaikh, who plays for Mumbai in domestic cricket, could get a look-in to inject some lower-order firepower. Mumbai have no reason to tinker with their XI.
Gujarat Giants (probable): Beth Mooney (wk), Phoebe Lichfield, Harleen Deol, Ash Gardner (capt), Deandra Dottin, Simran Shaikh, Kashvee Gautam, Bharti Fulmali, Tanuja Kanwar, Meghna Singh, Priya Mishra
Mumbai Indians (probable): Hayley Matthews, Amelia Kerr, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Harmanpreet Kaur (capt), Amanjot Kaur, Yastika Bhatia (wk), G Kamalini, S Sajana, Sanskriti Gupta, Shabnim Ismail, Parunika Sisodia
by Rex Clementine
Bloomfield finally broke their 15-year title drought, clinching the First-Class championship with a first-innings win over NCC in the final at R. Premadasa Stadium on Saturday. The two teams, having dominated their respective groups, squared off in the four-day final, with NCC walking in as the fancied side, boasting a half-dozen Sri Lankan internationals. But cricket, as they say, is a great leveler. A marathon double-century from Ron Chandraguptha turned the tide, propelling Bloomfield past the 500-run mark in the first innings and effectively sealing the deal.
Chandraguptha, a former Trinity College star, has been piling on the runs in domestic circuit, and with Test opener Dimuth Karunaratne stepping aside, he might just be in the selectors’ thoughts. His innings was the backbone of Bloomfield’s dominance, as he first stitched together a 119-run opening stand with fellow Trinitian Hasitha Boyagoda (52) and then built an unassailable 200-run partnership with Asitha Wanninayake (96). The former St. Anthony’s Katugastota opener was cruelly run out, just four short of what would have been a well-deserved century.
But there was no stopping Chandraguptha. In searing Colombo heat, he batted for two full days, anchoring Bloomfield to a commanding 508.
NCC, in reply, could only muster 312, with leg-spinner Jeffrey Vandersay weaving his magic to claim four wickets. With a near 200-run lead heading into the final day, Bloomfield had only one job – bat sensibly, avoid a collapse, and secure the title on a first-innings win.
Bloomfield were the underdogs but a maiden double hundred by Ron Chandraguptha sealed the deal for them.
At 41 for three, there was a slight wobble, but Wanninayake, playing with a steely resolve, soaked up the pressure and posted a back-to-the-wall hundred. His knock ensured NCC had no opening to push for an outright result. If the selectors were watching, he certainly sent a timely reminder that he belongs in the big league.
This victory is a massive shot in the arm for Bloomfield, a club that has faced its fair share of off-field turbulence. They lost a key revenue stream when the Urban Development Authority (UDA) took over ownership of the telecom towers at their premises. To make matters worse, their clubhouse was nearly repurposed for a hotel project aimed at supporting the adjacent rugby facility. Against this backdrop of struggle, lifting the First-Class title is a triumph worth savouring.
For NCC, Lahiru Udara stood tall, continuing his prolific domestic season with a sparkling 145, but his efforts weren’t enough to take his side over the line. He finished as the leading run-scorer of the season with 787 runs in 14 innings at an average of 56, while Chandraguptha wasn’t far behind, accumulating 729 runs at 48.
In the league phase, Bloomfield won four of their eight matches, a feat matched only by Moors. Bloomfield topped Group ‘A’, while NCC edged out Moors in Group ‘B’ to book their place in the final.
The biggest shock of the season, however, came from SSC, a powerhouse of Sri Lankan cricket, being relegated. Along with them, Ragama Cricket Club, Negombo Cricket Club, and Kandy Customs have lost their First-Class status for the next two seasons.
Sri Lanka Cricket has swung the axe on the bloated domestic structure, cutting the number of First-Class teams to 14 next season, with a further reduction to 12 the following year. The move aims to inject more quality and competitiveness into domestic cricket, ensuring the cream rises to the top.
For now, though, it’s Bloomfield who are raising their glasses at Reid Avenue, celebrating a long-awaited triumph – a victory forged in grit, resilience, and a touch of brilliance from Ron Chandraguptha.
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