Sports
Sri Lanka’s aggressive brand of cricket will test Bangladesh
by Rex Clementine
It’s been a refreshing two months following the Sri Lankan cricket team. They were a breath of fresh air. A far cry from the sloppy, sluggish and unattractive team that featured in the World Cup and finished an awful ninth costing themselves a place in the Champions Trophy. Five series wins inside two months is no mean task, but some will always say that it was Afghanistan and Zimbabwe and bigger challenges are ahead in a couple of months’ time. Point granted.
But the problem is Sri Lanka hardly looked threatening during the World Cup and were comprehensively beaten by both Bangladesh and Afghanistan. This time around, Sri Lanka did not let Afghanistan off the hook and if not for Lyndon Hannibal’s blunder at Dambulla they would have finished things off with flying colours beating the Afghans in seven straight games.
Having proper leaders has certainly worked for Sri Lanka in recent months. For decades we had picked the team and then chosen the leader. But the previous selection committee made an exception. They picked the captain first and then then the team. And Dasun Shanaka was no Mike Brearley or Ian Chappell. The results were disastrous. The selectors didn’t have the courage to sack the captain even after he had become a liability going through an extended lean patch. This resulted in deep divisions within the team as seen during the World Cup. Gloom was written all over the Sri Lankan camp and it’s no surprise they had such a horrendous tournament.
The previous selection committee also need to explain why they didn’t allow Dhananjaya de Silva to succeed Dimuth Karunaratne ahead of the new World Test Championship cycle. Dimuth in fact urged the selectors to announce a new captain prior to the series against Pakistan last year. You wonder whether the selectors had an axe to grind with DDS. But no one will have a bone to pick with DDS for he is such a likeable fellow. Small minds in big places is the only answer.
SLC received a lot of flak for the team’s poor show during the World Cup, but the fact of the matter is you can’t blame the board for they had not meddled with the affairs of the team entrusting the professionals who had been put in place would do an honest job. Those professionals sadly behaved like amateurs and failed us all.
So, what’s ahead of the team in Bangladesh. If they continue to push for excellence in fielding, bat with aggression and try to knock off the opposition without containing them, there’s no reason why they should cruise past the hosts.
There will be challenges though for the team. They will be without captain Wanindu Hasaranga, who has been suspended for the first two games. They will feel the absence of Pathum Nissanka too, who is nursing a hamstring injury. Also missing is strike bowler Dushmantha Chameera, who is not fully fit but he should be alright for the IPL. Priorities in life matters.
Injury to Nissanka sees the return of Avishka Fernando. You always get the feeling that successive selection panels have not got the best out of Avishka. A player of his kind tends to get out early but these are the kind of batters who live by the sword and die by the sword. When you see someone like him you should be prepared to give the long rope but selectors have shown little patience over the years. And sadly Avishka, unlike some others, doesn’t have any godfathers in cricket.The national cricket team left for Dhaka yesterday.
Latest News
Woods charged with driving under influence after crash
Tiger Woods has been charged with driving under the influence after rolling his car in a crash in Florida, police have confirmed.
The Martin County Sheriff’s Office said the 15-time major champion was also charged with property damage and refusal to submit to a lawful test.
Woods, 50, rolled his Land Rover after clipping a pressure cleaner truck while trying to overtake it at “a high rate of speed”, according to Sheriff John Budensiek.
The golfer, who had to crawl out of the passenger door of his vehicle, passed a breathalyser test after the crash but refused a urine test.
No-one sustained any injuries in the incident which took place on Beach Road in Jupiter Island just before 14:00 local time on Friday (about 19:00 GMT).
Sheriff Budensiek told a news conference: “The DUI investigators came to the scene and Mr Woods did exemplify signs of impairment.
“They did several tests on him. He did explain the injuries and surgeries that he’s had and we did take that into account, but they did some in-depth roadside tests.
“When it was determined, he was placed under arrest and taken to the Martin County jail.
“At the Martin County jail, and even on scene, we were really not suspicious of alcohol being involved in this case and that proved to be true.
“Mr Woods did a breathalyser test with triple zeros, but when it came time for us to ask for a urinary analysis test, he refused.”
Budensiek also said Woods had been “co-operative but was trying not to incriminate himself”.
“He has a right to refuse that test,” added the sheriff. “There is a statute which he will be charged with for refusing to take that test, but we will never get definitive results as to what he was impaired on at the time of the crash.”
US president Donald Trump was asked about the crash on Friday, saying: “I feel so badly. [Woods has] got some difficulty. There was an accident. That’s all I know.
“He’s a very close friend of mine, he’s an amazing person, an amazing man.”
Sheriff Budensiek said Woods would remain in jail for eight hours then be released on bond. The charges are misdemeanours, not felonies.
The BBC has contacted the golfer’s representatives for comment.
This is not the first time Woods has been involved in a car accident – he has played a limited schedule since the serious crash in 2021 that left him with extensive injuries and fortunate to be alive.
In 2017 police officers also found him slumped at the wheel of his parked Mercedes-Benz not far from his Florida home.
A toxicology report found Woods had several legal medications in his system and marijuana’s active ingredient, and he was sentenced to a year’s probation after pleading guilty to reckless driving.
In 2009 Woods hit a fire hydrant, a tree, and several hedges in a bizarre collision outside his home.
The incident sparked accusations of extramarital affairs which led to the end of his seven-year marriage and the loss of lucrative sponsorship deals.
[BBC]
Sports
Sri Sumangala cruise to semis after Kumarasiri heroics
Sri Sumangala College, Panadura secured a convincing five-wicket victory over Sri Dharmaloka College, Kelaniya in their Under-19 Division I Tier ‘B’ cricket quarter-final at Kuruvita on Friday, sealing a place in the semi-finals with two sessions to spare.
All-rounder Mevindu Kumarasiri played a decisive role in the win, following up his outstanding bowling performance with a vital knock of 44 runs to guide his team to the target of 157.
Sri Sumangala’s run chase was anchored by Kumarasiri and Neksha Iddamalgoda, who shared a crucial 85-run partnership for the fourth wicket after the early setbacks. The stand effectively put the Panadura side on course for victory.
Kumarasiri’s brisk 44 came at just under a run-a-ball and included five boundaries, while Iddamalgoda top-scored with 49, striking seven fours in a fluent innings. Although both batsmen were dismissed before the target was reached, their partnership had already taken the sting out of the chase.
Bihanga Silva and Sadika Damyuru then completed the formalities, steering Sri Sumangala past the target to wrap up an impressive victory.
The win was particularly remarkable considering Sri Sumangala had been bowled out for 144 in their first innings. However, Kumarasiri turned the game dramatically in their favour with a superb six-wicket haul that dismantled Sri Dharmaloka for just 89 in the second innings.
His match-winning all-round performance proved to be the turning point as Sri
Sumangala capitalised on the opportunity to book their place in the tournament’s semi-finals.
Scores
Sri Dharmaloka 211 all out in 76.3 overs
(Kaveen Deneth 106, Senuka Pehesara 29, Koshitha Adithya 19; Mevindu Kumarasiri 5/82) and 89 all out in 35 overs (Tharusha Mihiranga 24; Mevindu Kumarasiri 6/41, Methum Fernando 4/42)
Sri Sumangala 144 all out in 48.4 overs
(Neksha Iddamalgoda 47, Bihanga Silva 36, Mavindu Kumarasiri 21; Tishan Nipun 4/43, Sathindu Prabhoda 3/44, Koshitha Adithya 2/27) and 160 for 5 in 34.3 overs (Vidura Basuru 33, Sandeep Wijerathna 19, Neksha Iddamalgoda 49, Mevindu Kumarasiri 44; Koshitha Adithya 4/64) (RF)
Latest News
PSL 2026: Teams allowed to submit two XIs and pick one after toss
Shaheen Shah Afridi and Marnus Labuschagne, captains of Lahore Qalandars and Hyderabad Kingsmen, walked out with two team sheets each for the toss ahead of the opening matchof PSL 2026 and selected their final XIs based on which way the coin fell.
This was in accordance with a new regulation in the PSL playing conditions, which permits the captains to submit two team sheets to the match referee before the toss and finalise one of the submitted line-ups after the toss.
The clause 1.2.1 in the “Nomination and Replacement of Players” section reads: “Before the toss, each captain may submit two (2) different XI lineups in writing to the PSL Match Referee. Each lineup must include 11 players and a maximum of 4 substitute fielders (subject to Clause 1.2.5). After the toss, each captain must finalise one of the two submitted lineups by signing the selected team sheet. Once the final lineup has been nominated, no player listed in the selected playing eleven may be changed before the start of the match without the consent of the opposing captain.”
Tosses can play a significant role in this part of the world in night matches as a result of dew. The ball often gets wet and difficult to grip for the spinners, making them ineffective in the second innings. This change in the playing conditions is expected to provide a level playing field – a team batting first can add a fast bowler instead of a spinner while a team batting second can look to add depth to their batting.
There were no signs of dew in the first match of the season however because of the wind throughout the day and cloud cover.
[Cricinfo]
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