Sports
Sri Lanka struggling to beat Zimbabwe isn’t a good sign
by Rex Clementine
Sri Lanka just managed to overcome Zimbabwe on Monday recording a two wicket win with an over to spare in the second ODI at RPS. There were several infamous batting collapses last year and we are seeing an extension this year as the team was reduced to 112 for six chasing a target of 209.
Newcomer Janith Liyanage fought well but failed to finish the job. At 172 for eight, still 37 runs required, Sri Lanka were scratching their heads. Eventually, Dushmantha Chameera and Jeffrey Vandersay saw the team over the line. Maheesh Theekshana too had chipped in. But many questions were unanswered about the batting unit. On many occasions in recent times, the bowlers had to bail out the team after the batting had failed.
Sri Lanka has no business to struggle against Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe had lost an ODI and T-20 series at home to Ireland recently and were knocked out of this year’s ICC T-20 World Cup after losing to Namibia and Uganda.
Their coach, David Houghton, the former Test captain, was forced to resign. Zimbabwe have come here even without their best batsman in Sean Williams, who is injured. So what’s the fuss in beating them?
The previous selection committee’s policy of playing too many ‘all-rounders proved to be disastrous, and the current committee seem to be continuing that thinking pattern.
Successful Sri Lankan teams have played six batters and one all-rounder, and the current team needs to go back to that combination.
Dasun Shanaka has been such a flop in ODI cricket that his average has dropped to 22 and there’s just one half-century to show in the last 20 innings. Earlier at least you could not drop him for he was the captain of the side, but there’s no such thing like that and if Janith Liyanage can provide you with what Dasun did, why do you persevere with him?
Hopefully for Thursday’s final ODI, Sri Lanka will steady the batting.
Liyanage came up with a match winning knock and fell agonizingly short of a well deserved hundred. “The ball started doing a bit and my plan was to see off that challenge and go on and finish the innings. More than the hundred what was important was winning the game. We had to beat the rain as well and the plan was to execute a boundary and stay ahead. But it didn’t pay off,” he told journalists after the game.
“I had got the feeling that they were going to stop the game after that over and we needed that boundary to stay ahead of Duckworth Lewis. I guess the intention was right, but the execution was wrong. Nevertheless, it was a good learning experience,” Liyanage added.
Six-a-side school cricket is set to make a high-profile return to Moratuwa when the Old Boys’ Association of Prince of Wales’ College stages the Prince of Wales’ College 150th Anniversary Inter-School Sixes Cricket Tournament on August 29 and 30 at the De Soysa Stadium.
The two-day tournament is one of the major sporting attractions of the College’s historic 150th anniversary celebrations and
will bring together 16 leading school cricket teams for a knockout competition.
The tournament is aimed at reviving the excitement of six-a-side cricket, a format renowned for its fast pace and spectator-friendly nature, which has not featured regularly in major inter-school competitions in recent years.
The Old Boys’ Association believes the 150th anniversary provides the ideal opportunity to bring the format back to the forefront while celebrating Moratuwa’s deep-rooted passion for cricket.
Cricket has long held a special place in the hearts of Moratuwa’s residents, while Prince of Wales’ College boasts a proud cricketing tradition that has produced several outstanding players who have gone on to represent Sri Lanka at the highest level.
The organizers expect more than 5,000 cricket enthusiasts from Moratuwa and surrounding areas to witness the tournament over the two days, turning the event into a major festival of school cricket.
The opening ceremony on August 29 is scheduled to be attended by Kusal Mendis, one of the leading cricketers produced by Prince of Wales’ College and a member of the Sri Lankan national team.
The tournament will feature 16 schools, including Royal College Colombo, St. Joseph’s College Darley Road, Thurstan College Colombo, S. Thomas’ College Mount Lavinia, Dharmasoka College Ambalangoda, Prince of Wales’ College Moratuwa, Moratu Maha Vidyalaya, D.S. Senanayake College Colombo, Sri Sumangala College Panadura, Richmond College Galle, Mahanama College Colombo, St. Sebastian’s College Moratuwa, St. Peter’s College Bambalapitiya, Wesley College Colombo, Ananda College Colombo and Mahanama College Panadura.
With the competition being played on a knockout basis, the compact format is expected to produce plenty of attacking cricket and give emerging players an opportunity to showcase their skills in front of a large crowd.
Apart from the competitive aspect, the tournament is also intended to promote sportsmanship, friendship and fellowship among the participating schools.
The tournament will conclude on August 30 with a ceremonial awards presentation, with the participation of Eran Wickramaratne, distinguished invitees, representatives of participating schools, past pupils and members of the cricketing community.
The Old Boys’ Association has also expressed its appreciation to the corporate sector and event sponsors whose support has helped make the tournament possible.
Their contribution, according to the organizers, reflects the continuing partnership between Prince of Wales’ College, its alumni and the corporate community in supporting educational, sporting and development initiatives.
The six-a-side tournament is therefore expected to provide not only two days of entertaining school cricket, but also a fitting sporting celebration of 150 years of Prince of Wales’ College.
India 503/9 decl (Devdutt Padikkal 117, Dhruv Jurel 115; Asitha Fernando 4-106, Prabath Jayasuriya 2-132) drew with Sri Lanka 290 (Sonal Dinusha 103, Pasindu Sooriyabandara 80; Prasidh Krishna 3-52, Manav Suthar 3-85) and 429/9 f/o (Sonal Dinusha 133*, Pasindu Sooriyabandara 92; Ravindra Jadeja 3-94, Manav Suthar 3-121)
American golfer Matt Gogel has been suspended for six months for betting on golf tournaments, the PGA Tour has said.
The 55-year-old competes on the PGA Tour Champions circuit which is reserved for professional golfers aged 50 and older.
Gogel did not bet on events in which he was participating but admitted to unknowingly violating PGA Tour policy by placing “small recreational wagers” in 2024 and 2025.
“I would never knowingly violate the integrity of the game of golf,” Gogel said in a statement.
“I made an honest mistake and I look forward to playing in 2027 on the PGA Tour Champions.”
He had two top-10 finishes across 18 PGA Tour Champions events in 2026 and was most recently in action during the Rogers Charity Classic in Calgary, Alberta where he finished tied 30th last week.
Gogel, who has earned more than $760,000 (£559,000) in prize money from Champions events, won the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am in 2002 – his only victory in 179 starts on the PGA Tour.
His suspension came into effect on 23 August and lasts until 22 February.
[BBC Sports]
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