Thomians drop wicket taking coloursman for promising young batsman

by Reemus Fernando

S. Thomas’ have made a huge gamble in dropping left-arm spinner Abheeth Paranawidana for a promising young batsman (fresher) for the 146th Battle of the Blues Big Match which starts at the SSC ground on Thursday.

The school from Mount Lavinia have announced their playing eleven leaving out Paranawidana who is their second highest wicket taker of the season.

S. Thomas’ relied heavily on their left-arm spinners Paranawidana and Aaron de Silva for wickets this season. The duo accounted for nearly 50% of wickets taken by Thomian bowlers this season.

While Aaron de Silva is their highest wicket taker with 49 wickets in 13 matches, Paranawidana, who played only ten matches this season has a tally of 39 wickets. Last season he had over 60 wickets in 14 matches.

Thomians have reasons. They have decided to go with one left-arm spinner to include an extra batsman to their XI. Incidentally, S. Thomas’ have entrusted former St. Peter’s College Bambalapitiya Under 15 player Reshon Solomon with the task of strengthening the batting lineup.

The Thomian authorities consider him as a promising batsman but could not field in their tournament matches this season as he could not be registered with Sri Lanka Schools Cricket Association under their flag.

S. Thomas’ fielded him for two friendly matches, against Ananda (three-day) and St. Peter’s. Solomon top scored with 84 runs in that match. According to sources close to St. Peter’s, the Peteries in the Under 15 age category are not selected for their Under 19 team.

Both Royal and S. Thomas’ have a history of recruiting talented players from other schools to strengthen their teams. Many such players have gone on to represent Sri Lanka. With the Thomian batting lineup not so strong this season, young Solomon has been entrusted with a huge responsibility and an opportunity. His is certainly an interesting sub plot to watch during the three-day encounter.

Had Paranawidana been picked it would have been his third consecutive Big Match.