Sports
A hurdles showdown to brighten the day
By Reemus Fernando
Schools athlete Tharushi Karunaratne who shone brightly at the last meet and the men’s 400 metres specialist Kalinga Kumarage will not be in action but a showdown between current and former national record holders in the men’s 110 metres hurdles namely, Janindu Lakvijaya and Roshan Ranatunga is likely to brighten the day when the selection trial for three major track and field events takes place at Diyagama today.
Ratnayake Central, Walala runner Karunaratne who stunned national record holder Gayanthika Abeyratne in the women’s 800 metres at the first selection trial has pulled out from the competition due to sickness and Kumarage too has been granted an exemption to skip today’s vital selection according to Sri Lanka Athletics sources.
The teams for the postponed Asian Games, Senior Asian Athletics Championships and Junior Asian Athletics Championships will be selected from the athletes who excel in this meet.
Lakvijaya had little competition when he shattered Roshan Ranatunga’s national record in the men’s 110 metres hurdles at the last trial. Ranatunga did not feature at the last trial but will be in action today. An exciting competition is on the cards when history’s two fastest Sri Lankan hurdlers compete shoulder to shoulder. The two athletes are the only hurdlers to have clocked legal sub 14 seconds.
However, the possibility of one of them making it to the Asian Games depends entirely on their ability to produce another Sri Lanka National record performance. Sri Lanka Athletics has set 13.48 seconds as the selection standard for the discipline.
In the men’s 400 metres, Aruna Dharshana will have the company of Pabasara Niku to strive for success in the sprint event without Kumarage. The selection standard set for the event is 45.70 seconds.
South Asian Games medallist Dilshi Kumarasinghe is expected to make a return in the women’s 800 metres, while Gayanthika Abeyratne is expected to compete in the 1,500 metres.
Steeplechase national record holder Nilani Ratnayake is expected to do well in her pet event after producing a feat of 9:40.65 seconds at the meet held in March.
For Sri Lanka and new head coach Sanath Jayasuriya, the last few months have certainly been winning ones, with the few blips – a 3-0 T20I series reverse against India, and losing the first two Tests in England – swiftly forgotten thanks to the morale-boosting wins and performances that followed.
But observers of Sri Lankan cricket over recent years will know better than to get carried away. After the twin peaks of 2014’s T20 World Cup win and overseas Test triumph in England, there was always likely to be a comedown and rebuild after the retirement of the stalwarts that drove those victories.
But the false dawns since then have been plenty, from an unexpectedly promising 2021 T20 World Cup campaign, to an even more unexpected 2022 Asia Cup final win, and then a run to the final of the 2023 Asia Cup which itself was preceded by an unbeaten 2023 ODI World Cup qualifying campaign. Even this year’s T20 World Cup build up had seen resounding series wins against Zimbabwe, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. All the hope that sprung from those victories, however, was just as quickly snuffed out by abject showings in major tournaments and finals.
So will this time be any different? For Jayasuriya and his team (which he has mentioned at any opportunity when allocating credit), the proof of the pudding is in the tasting. At the moment it tastes quite good, but balancing long-term objectives with short-term goals is no easy task, and during the early part of Jayasuriya’s reign as head coach it’s the short-term that has taken immediate priority.
Take the recently concluded series against New Zealand. Several red-ball specialists were sent to South Africa early to prepare for Sri Lanka’s crucial WTC-impacting Test series later this month, but four key players – Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis, Kamindu Mendis and Asitha Fernando – were asked to remain and play against a fairly green New Zealand side.
Would those four have been better served preparing for the Tests Sri Lanka need to win to keep their WTC final hopes alive? Most certainly. But for Jayasuriya, the need to keep a winning momentum was just as important – and for those four players, a shorter adaptation period is now a challenge they must meet head-on.
“We were discussing all these options, but we wanted to do well, even in Sri Lanka with the ODIs and T20s, because we can’t take things for granted even with this New Zealand team. Yes, some of their players didn’t come but they still have a good team. They played good cricket here,” said Jayasuriya, alongside chief selector Upul Tharanga, on Thursday [21]. “So that is why we give some of them to rest on the last game – to come back to Colombo, rest and then go to South Africa. Some of the players may have to adjust themselves as quickly as possible to the situation. So Kamindu, Pathum, Kusal Mendis, those three players need to adjust themselves according to the situations, red-ball and white-ball.”
As for Asitha – Sri Lanka’s lead red-ball seamer – Jayasuriya felt the rest afforded by not playing in the T20s and the final ODI was enough.
“We gave him a rest in the T20 games, where he had two games off,” Jayasuriya said. “And after that we got him to play two ODIs and we gave him the third ODI off. So we’re managing him, because he’s the one who’s bowling really well at the moment. We have to look after him.
“Of course, we considered those areas resting players with the selectors, but we came to the decision to play everyone in the first two games, and then to see how it goes.”
These answers may not satisfy those who might view a white-ball series against a depleted New Zealand side as significantly less important than the Tests in South Africa – particularly with Sri Lanka’s next major ODI tournament set to be in 2027 for the World Cup – however, it’s increasingly evident that Jayasuriya’s management style – at least at this juncture – is focused on tackling the challenge at hand as opposed to looking at the big picture.
“What I say is, when you get to the ground, you can win the match or lose it, but you have to show the right attitude and body language. That needs to be 100% – if you do that you’ll never go wrong. I always insist on the basics like that.
“If you go for a T20 it’s about three hours of cricket, an ODI is around six hours. For that period of time, flick the switch, and give me 100%, and on either side of that forget about it. Like that, I look to give small, small goals. You don’t need to give these boys big targets, they have played cricket from a young age, they know what to do. They just need the confidence, structure, discipline, put it all together and go well.”
[Cricinfo]
Left-arm spinner Lasith Embuldeniya has been named in Sri Lanka’s squad for the two Tests in South Africa, more than two years after he last played a Test. Offspinner Nishan Peiris, who made his Test debut against New Zealand in September, has also been included.
Ramesh Mendis, the offspin-bowling allrounder, misses out on selection, though he claimed six wickets in his only Test appearance this year. Ramesh, additionally, can bat.
Though Prabath Jayasuriya leads the spin contingent, this amounts to something of a shake-up in the ranks with Sri Lanka playing in Durban and Gqeberha, where the tracks are expected to take more turn than most South African surfaces, particularly as matches wear on.
The squad is largely as expected in the batting and seam-bowling fronts, however. Asitha Fernando, Vishwa Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Kasun Rajitha and allrounder Milan Rathnayake make up fast-bowling outfit. Top order batter Oshada Fernando makes it in into this squad, but Nishan Madushka – who has made a bright start in ODIs – does not.
Both Embuldeniya and Oshada have partly been picked on account of their good performances in South Africa in 2019, when Sri Lanka had also played in Durban and what was then Port Elizabeth. Embuldeniya took six wickets at 23.83 across three innings on that tour, while Oshada hit a fourth-innings 75 not out alongside Kusal Mendis to see Sri Lanka home in what could have been a tough chase. Neither player, though, has been especially impressive in domestic cricket over the last season, though Embuldeniya did have a decent outing in the four-day National Super League.
Several Test specialists are already in Durban for a pre-series training camp, overseen partially by former South Africa batter Neil McKenzie, who serves as Sri Lanka’s consultant on this trip.
The first Test is scheduled to start on November 27, in Kingsmead, Durban.
Both Sri Lanka and South Africa have a shot at finishing in the top two on the World Test Championship table.
Sri Lanka squad for Test series in South Africa
Rex Clementine at Pallekele
It’s been pure cricketing poetry watching the Sri Lankan team in action. They’re on a roll, and Tuesday night saw them bag yet another series triumph, leaving fans beaming from ear to ear. It’s hard to believe this is the same side that finished a dismal ninth in last year’s World Cup. What a turnaround—it’s like NPP sweeping the general elections. This time they have a two thirds majority. Last time they had a mere three seats.
So, what’s the secret sauce behind Sri Lanka’s resurgence? Quite a few things, actually.
The team has embraced a two-pronged approach, balancing short-term goals with long-term ambitions. The quick fixes—improving fielding, injecting energy into their game, running smarter between the wickets, prioritizing fitness, and fostering commitment—are already bearing fruit. Meanwhile, the long-term strategies, like unearthing finishers who can hit the ball out of the park and developing seam-bowling all-rounders to compete abroad, are seeds sown for future harvests. Sanath Jayasuriya is a smart man. So is Upul Tharanga.
At the heart of this success story is that dynamic duo. As Head Coach and Chairman of Selectors, they’ve been pulling the strings with precision. Their knack for picking the right personnel has been nothing short of masterful.
Take Charith Asalanka, for instance. One of the youngest players in the squad, he’s being groomed as a long term leader. The selectors borrowed a leaf out of Haroon Lorgat’s book—remember when Lorgat entrusted a 22-year-old Graeme Smith to lead South Africa? That gamble paid off spectacularly, and Asalanka seems poised to follow in similar footsteps. He commands respect, reads the game like a seasoned pro, and is tactically astute—a strong leader in the making, no doubt.
The management has also mastered the art of using the carrot and stick approach. Consider Kusal Mendis. Dropped for the Lord’s Test this September, Sri Lanka’s vice-captain received a loud and clear message: performance trumps seniority. Since then, Kusal has been a man transformed. Against New Zealand, he was the Man of the Match in the first two ODIs and, unsurprisingly, the Player of the Series.
Smart planning has been another hallmark of this team. Even as the ODI squad wrapped up their series against New Zealand, the Test team was in South Africa, undergoing a residential camp to gear up for the fiery pace of Rabada and Mulder.
Sri Lanka’s focus on developing the next generation of cricketers also deserves a standing ovation. After clinching the series against New Zealand, the team rested five senior players for the dead rubber and handed opportunities to fresh faces. This forward-thinking approach ensures the pipeline remains robust and ready for the challenges ahead.
Rewind to the start of the year, and Sri Lanka’s World Test Championship hopes were pie in the sky. The team was sinking faster than the Titanic. But fast-forward to today, and they’re on the cusp of booking their tickets to Lord’s. It’s been a turnaround for the ages.
The team’s wins haven’t been limited to home soil; they’ve triumphed away, too, in places like Bangladesh and England. What’s more, they’ve been climbing the rankings ladder across all formats, taking down teams ranked higher than them with an underdog’s grit and flair.
The glory days of Sri Lankan cricket that once seemed to be slipping through our fingers are back. This team is brimming with potential, and the horizon promises even greater feats. Rest assured, remarkable things lie ahead for this rejuvenated side.
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