Sports

The Oval 1998 is special, but is 2024 better?

Published

2 years ago

2024/09/12

Sanath Jayasuriya has been meticulous in his planning and the result was Sri Lanka ended with a memorable win in the third Test at The Oval.

Rex Clementine in London

The Oval 1998 is special for all Sri Lankans because that win over England broke many glass ceilings. Sri Lanka were reigning ODI World Champions at that point and to give them a one off Test match was an insult. But captain Arjuna Ranatunga used that as a motivation to fire up his players. Sanath Jayasuriya’s double hundred, Aravinda de Silva 152 and Muttiah Muralitharan’s 16 wickets resulted in a ten wicket win and Richie Benaud on commentary rubbing salt to English wounds will remain in our memories forever.

But is the recent win at The Oval better than the 1998 one? Well, it could be. In 1998 Sri Lanka had an experienced team. Arjuna, Sanath, Aravinda and Murali were household names. But the heroes of the 2024 win were barely known to the Englishmen. Milan Ratnayake leave alone in England, but he is hardly known in Colombo. Pathum Nissanka and Kamindu Mendis came out of Heathrow for the first time but they both adapted so well.

“You can never forget the 1998 win. The way Arjuna motivated us and yes that’s an unforgettable win. But in that game conditions were to our favour and we had a very strong team. But this time we played in total different conditions,” Sanath Jayasuriya hero in 1998 and Head Coach in 2024 told journalists.

“This time, there was a lot of grass. It was cloudy, gloomy and very cold. Conditions were ideal for England seamers. The way Kamindu and Dhananjaya batted was outstanding in the first innings and then in the second innings Kusal gave us a prolific start and Angelo finished it so well using all his experience. I simply don’t have words to explain Pathum Nissanka. He is in a different league,” added Jayasuriya

“We had a lot of faith in Pathum. But then he made it look all too easy. The way he batted is an example for any young batsman to watch and learn how to bat in England when conditions are seaming around. For the first hour, he played with a straight bat. No cross batted shots. All his runs in that hour came with straight drives. Then as the bowlers were tiring and faulted with their lines, he started playing the cut, pull and those square drives and cover drives were so good to see,” Jayasuriya noted.

“Then once we had the game within our reach, Pathum showed the England bowlers who the boss is. Those two hook shots that he played for six off Stone would have hurt England. That is called winning in style,” the former Test captain further said.

Sri Lanka took a gamble by backing four seam bowlers for the Test match and leaving out spinner Prabath Jayasuriya. That proved to be a superb decision as all four of them made an impact.

“We took a gamble. It has never happened in our history as traditionally spin has been our strength. We had to think out of the box because conditions demanded extra seam. Asitha bowled some unplayable spells and finished as the leading wicket taker in the series from either side. Lahiru Kumara bowled with pace and I liked his aggression. Then Vishwa was outstanding in the second innings. Milan Ratnayake is the new kid in the block and he will go a long way,” said Jayasuriya.

Jayasuriya himself has a lot of experience in England having represented Somerset, Lancashire and Worcester in County Cricket. He was asked whether England underestimated Sri Lanka with a 2-0 series lead in hand.

“We don’t worry about that. We wanted to play for our strength and we won the Test match. Old Trafford, where we lost by five wickets, was a tight game. I feel that if we had come into the series with one more warm-up game, we would have fared much better.

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Sports

Juventus Training Camp from 6-10 July in Colombo

Published

2 hours ago

2026/07/3

Priyan

Rosario de Silva CEO Colombo Kickerz Football Academy announced the training camp

The much anticipated Juventus Training Camp organized by the Colombo Kickerz Football Academy will take place from 6th to 10th July at the CR&FC Grounds Colombo.

The Camp will be conducted by two official Juventus Academy coaches from Italy, and will provide 50 young footballers from across the country to participate in an intensive program based on the renowned Juventus methodology, focusing on technical development, tactical understanding, team work, discipline and personal growth.

Romario de Silva CEO of Colombo Kickerz Football Academy said that the objective of the Academy was to provide young footballers with access to world class coaching and international development opportunities.

He added that the Training Camp was made possible through the valued support of Hilton Colombo Residencies, Aitken Spence travels, The Pappare and Lady J.

Colombo Kickerz Football Academy established in 2015, is one of Sri Lanka’s leading youth football academies, dedicated to developing young footballers both on and off the field through a holistic approach to player development.

Latest News

Wijesundara set for debut as injury-hit Sri Lanka struggle to make up XI

Published

7 hours ago

2026/07/3

Priyan

Prabath Jayasuriya will enter the Sri Lanka XI (Cricinfo)

Sri Lanka have been hit by a spate of injuries and an illness ahead of the secondbTest against West Indies, in North Sound, a game they must win to take something away from the series after suffering an innings defeat in the first.

The injuries have forced the team management to pick from a squad of 13, rather than the 17 they took on tour. The seam-bowling department has been especially hard hit, with Lahiru Kumara and Vishwa Fernando both going down with injuries.

The most serious injury, however, seems to be that of opener Pathum Nissanka, who left the squad on June 30 to undergo surgery on an injured wrist in the United Kingdom. Lahiru Udara will take Nissanka’s place at the top of the order for the second Test. Nissanka’s surgery casts a cloud over his Lanka Premier League participation as well.

Vishwa, meanwhile, has not sufficiently recovered from back and side pain to become available for the second Test. And Sri Lanka’s quickest bowler in the squad, Kumara, remains unavailable after having walked off the field with a hamstring complaint (a recurring injury) having delivered just one over in the previous Test.

These injuries, plus Kasun Rajitha’s modest performance in the first Test, have paved the way for seamer Isitha Wijesudera’s Test debut.

In addition, offspin-bowling allrounder Ramesh Mendis has contracted a bacterial infection on tour. As such, he is also unavailable for selection. Prabath Jayasuriya – Sri Lanka’s top specialist spinner over the last three years – will enter the XI.

(Cricinfo)

Latest News

Ronaldo scores as Portugal come back to win, Croatia denied by late VAR

Published

11 hours ago

2026/07/3

Priyan

Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates scoring their first goal (Aljazeera)

Substitute Goncalo Ramos’s headed goal edged Portugal into the last 16 of the FIFA World Cup 2026 after a gripping 2-1 win against Croatia.

Ramos connected with a superb pass from Rafael Leao in the fourth minute of stoppage time on Thursday to snuff out a Croatia team that had created the lion’s share of the chances in sapping evening heat in Toronto.

In a dramatic ending, Croatia thought they had equalised in the dying seconds, but Josko Gvardiol’s goal was chalked off for offside.

The Croatians were left stunned by the decision, while Portugal’s players celebrated.

Cristiano Ronaldo played his role in the victory, stroking home a penalty that cancelled out Ivan Perisic’s opener.

It was Ronaldo’s first-ever goal in the knockout phase of the World Cup, and his remarkable international career will have another chapter when Portugal face Spain in Dallas on Monday.

Perisic had stunned the Portuguese by slotting the ball under the advancing Portugal goalkeeper Diogo Costa in the 53rd minute.

Within minutes, Ronaldo had the ball in the net after controlling a long pass, but his effort was disallowed for offside.

But Portugal got level when Renato Veiga was grabbed by Croatia’s Nikola Vlasic in the penalty area, and after a VAR check, the referee pointed to the spot.

Ronaldo stepped up to convert the penalty with ease, hitting the ball straight down the middle of the goal and pumping his fists with joy afterwards.

In a pulsating game, Manchester City forward Mateo Kovacic’s low shot was pushed onto a post by goalkeeper Costa’s fingertips.

Still, Croatia pushed, and Petar Sucic had the ball in the net, but the assistant referee’s flag was up for a clear offside.

Ronaldo was withdrawn in the 81st minute to allow Ruben Neves to come on.

Croatia continued to create more chances than their opponents, and Mario Pasalic came so close to winning the game with a header at the far post, but it bounced just wide.

But when Ramos connected, the net bulged, and Portugal were through.

(Aljazeera)