Sports

Big dreams inside a ‘small’ basketball court

Published

5 years ago

2021/10/25

Sahan Weerasooriya

Basketball player Praneeth Udumalagala has come a long way in his chosen sport

Interview with Praneeth Udumalagala

by a Special Sports Correspondent

Praneeth Udumalagala has come a long way in one of his chosen sports basketball and is a hot prospect when he turns out for Sri Lanka in tournaments here and abroad. He is a rare sportsman having represented his country in swimming and basketball. But the latter is what has given him so much recognition and a clear view of what he loves to do in the future. He is engaged in business and manages to dedicate time for competitive sport as well. In an interview with ‘The Island’ Udumalagala spoke about his love for basketball, his work engagements and future plans.

Excerpts of the interview:

Q- How is your busy life as a player dedicated to basketball?

Well, it’s a full schedule just like any other dedicated athlete. The time revolves around training, strength and conditioning and other aspects of the game. My love for the game is such I enjoy every moment as a basketball player.

Q- You say you are looking at playing professional or semi-professional basketball in the future? Please elaborate on that a bit.

At this stage in my basketball career, I want to consistently reach to higher standards outside of Sri Lanka. If any overseas league gives me an opportunity to play professionally or as a semi-professional I would be ready to take up the challenge. I was able to play in the Nepal basketball league in 2019 and I am looking forward for the next.

Q- You are a national athlete and have represented Sri Lanka at many international tournaments. How is the feeling to represent Sri Lanka in your chosen sport?

I was able to represent my country in two sports. As a youngster during school days, I was able to represent Sri Lanka in both swimming and basketball. The pride of representing your country is the ultimate feeling for any athlete in his or her chosen sport. Once you wear the national jersey and step on the court you just want to give your 101% to make your people proud and bring glory to your nation. That feeling is hard to express in words.

Q-What is your best performance for Sri Lanka at an international tournament?

I think the toughest tournament I played in for the national team was the FIBA Pre-qualifiers 2021 in Bahrain. I believe that was my best performance where I was able to average 17.3 points, 5.8 rebounds and three assists throughout the tournament. Apart from that winning the SAG silver medal in 2019 is a great moment where we were able to create history and I’m glad I was able to do my best for the team and country.

Q-Tell us about your experience in representing team Times International Basketball Club which became champions in the Nepal Basketball League

It was such a memorable experience. The league was a month and a half long. By the time I joined the team the league had already begun, and my team had played a couple of games. There was little to no time to see how I fitted in best in the team format, but everyone in my team was excited to have me as much as I was to play in the league. From the league organization, my team management, competition level to the fan base the whole league was such a hit. It couldn’t be any better as we were able to win the league and I was on top of my performance.

Q- Being adjudged as the Sri Lanka Basketball Player of the year in 2015 must have made you feel proud. Do you think you were able to continue the momentum and win more honours in the sport?

It was indeed a proud moment. More than winning more or any honours to be frank the focus was always to be on the top of my game. No matter the situation, when my name is called, I always want to be ready to deliver more than what’s expected. Once I’m able to do what I do best, the rest will fall into place naturally, the recognition and honours will come.

Q- You played your part in Sri Lanka winning Silver at SABA championship 2011 in India. Can you compare how these two nations have progressed in the sport from there onwards?

Yes, that year was a memorable one as it was my debut year paying for Sri Lanka. As unfortunate as it sounds, India has since been improving and making strides in basketball while we struggle to go forward. The biggest difference I see is that India treats basketball as a professional sport while that is not the case in Sri Lanka. The national players here have their full-time jobs to take care of, then comes basketball. Saying that, I’m hopeful that many good things are ahead for Sri Lanka basketball and its players as we have a new leadership in the Sri Lanka Basketball Federation.

Q- You’ve been a regular in the Sri Lanka national team since 2011. How do you see yourself being there for contention when other promising youngsters are also knocking on the door for a playing slot?

The current national team is full of youngsters and promising talent. I am delighted to be playing alongside them to share my experiences and hand over the baton as we go forward. It is important I be on top of my game immaterial if I’m playing with experienced senior players or with talented youth. The playing minutes in a game are based on who’s the best inside the lines and as long as I play in the level I’m playing now it’s safe to say the youngsters could learn a lot and we can get better as a team.

Q- Are you employed and tell us something about work in office and how you manage to engage in competitive sport as well?

I play contract basketball for FairFirst insurance Ltd. I work with my father-in-law and help manage the production process at Shisasa Holdings International Pvt Ltd. I am also a part of the coaching staff at my alma mater St. Joseph’s College Colombo 10.

I have my own company IImpact Hoop Lab Pvt Ltd. Under IImpact Hoop Lab I run my own basketball skills training programme, produce basketball rims and backboards in Sri Lanka.

Q- The COVID pandemic was a challenge to everybody. How did you cope?

The COVID pandemic was a very difficult time period for me, and it still is as we speak. But just like any other challenge we can’t give up on our dreams. My goal was to survive these tough times and hope it will pass by soon. The training programme came to a halt, but we manage to do few online trainings and individual home visits for some of our athletes. Things are looking positive now and I am hoping to return to the programme as soon as I can.

Q- What are your future goals and plans in life and sport?

My goal is to continue to work hard and grow my company IImpact Hoop Lab. I want to work hard, create a dedicated basketball skill training centre for my training programme and help athletes to reach higher levels in the game of basketball. Through my company we produce affordable, high quality basketball rims and backboards that are made in Sri Lanka and we are also scaling into court construction. I will continue to play basketball as long as I can all the while I grow in other aspects in life. At the end of the day I want to be an exemplary role model for every basketball player out there.

All News Advertisement

Latest News

Nuwan Thushara among 46 men’s cricketers to be awarded SLC contracts

Published

1 hour ago

2026/06/2

Priyan

Nuwan Thushara's inclusion indicates a re-setting of his relationship with the board [Cricinfo]

Medium pacer Nuwan Thushara is among 46 men’s cricketers awarded national contracts by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), after he withdrew the legal case he had filed against the board in April.

Thushara’s inclusion indicates a re-setting of his relationship with the board. The bowler had objected to SLC making a fitness test a requirement for the board granting him a No-Objection Certificate to play franchise cricket overseas. But since the board members whom he had been at a loggerheads with were ousted en-masse by the Sri Lankan government, Thushara decided to withdraw his case.

He had then written to the new administrators at SLC, announcing his eligibility for national selection, which the new Transformation Committee has since accepted.

Also in the contracts list are Jaffna legspinner Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, ambidextrous spinner Tharindu Rathnayake, batters Kamil Mishara and Lasith Croosepulle,and allrounders Isitha Wijesundera, Wanuja Sahan and Dilum Sudeera, who have all been included for the first time. Batter Bhanuka Rajapaksa was not awarded a contract, though he had played domestic cricket in Sri Lanka earlier this year.

There are otherwise no major surprises in what is a substantial roll of cricketers. The list features players such as Dinesh Chandimal and Kasun Rajitha, who primarily play Tests, as well as limited-overs specialists like Binura Fernando.

The SLC release said the players had been graded into six different categories, but did not divulge which players were in which category. The period of the contract runs from April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027.

Men’s national contracted players

Kusal Mendis, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dinesh Chandimal, Wanindu Hasaranga, Pathum Nissanka, Charith Asalanka, Kamindu Mendis, Dushmantha Chameera, Asitha Fernando, Dasun Shanaka, Maheesh Theekshana, Janith Liyanage, Dunith Wellalage, Niroshan Dickwella, Jeffrey Vandersay, Prabath Jayasuriya, Vishwa Fernando, Matheesha Pathirana, Dilshan Madushanka, Pavan Rathnayake, Eshan Malinga, Milan Rathnayake, Lahiru Kumara, Kasun Rajitha, Avishka Fernando, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Ramesh Mendis, Kamil Mishara, Binura Fernando, Nuwan Thushara, Sonal Dinusha, Sahan Arachchige, Pramod Madushan, Lasith Croospulle, Lahiru Udara, Nuwanidu Fernando, Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, Isitha Wijesundara, Nishan Madushka, Akila Dananjaya, Chamika Karunaratne, Pasindu Sooriyabandara, Mohammed Shiraz, Wanuja Sahan, Dilum Sudeera, Tharindu Rathnayake

[Cricinfo]

Latest News

Sri Lanka Cricket relieved at ICC’s mild response to Transformation Committee

Published

6 hours ago

2026/06/2

Priyan

The ICC had imposed sanctions on SLC in 2015 and 2023 citing government interference [Cricinfo]

No Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) representative was invited to the ICC’s quarterly meeting in Ahmedabad over the weekend, but the fact that the ICC board has not slapped sanctions on SLC’s new Transformation Committee is being quietly celebrated by the new board in Sri Lanka, a board member said.

The Transformation Committee was appointed by the nation’s government in May, replacing the elected set of SLC office-bearers. The ICC had taken a dim view of government interference in SLC in 2023, as well as in 2015, imposing sanctions on each of those occasions.

But athough the ICC had sent deputy chair Imran Khwaja on what was effectively a fact-finding trip to Colombo in May, no sanctions attributed to government interference have followed, even after the latest ICC meeting.

“So far what we feel is that no news is good news,” said a Transformation Committee member. In late 2023, the ICC had suspended SLC from its board due to government interference. On that occasion, the country’s sports minister was accused of overreach.

The latest, sweeping administrative changes in Sri Lanka, which includes the ousting of the elected board and the installation of a committee tasked ostensibly with transforming Sri Lankan cricket, have so far only drawn ICC scrutiny rather than tangible consequences. The ICC statement said only this: “In Sri Lanka, ICC Deputy Chair Imran Khwaja and Devajit Saikia (BCCI) have visited and met with relevant stakeholders to assess ongoing developments.”

The Transformation Committee headed by Eran Wickramaratne has repeatedly expressed that its goal remains to rewrite an outdated SLC constitution, in order to better align the organisation with the requirements of Sri Lanka’s public.

“Even in the debates in parliament, which were not driven by party loyalties, it has been acknowledged that there has to be a change at Sri Lanka Cricket,” said Wickramaratne, chair of the new Transformation Committee and a former politician. “The job we have is to change the SLC constitution. The stakeholders in that change are the Sri Lankan people. The people can give their ideas. Other stakeholders can also express their ideas. We thought our first role is to listen to those ideas.”

SLC hopes Transformation Committee members will be invited to future ICC meetings.

ESPNcricinfo has reached out to the ICC for comment on SLC participation in meetings, but the ICC is yet to respond.

[Cricinfo]

Sports

ICC approves red-to-pink ball change to reduce bad-light impact in Test cricket

Published

6 hours ago

2026/06/2

Priyan

Will teams readily agree to moving from a red to pink ball during a Test? [Cricinfo]

In an attempt to reduce the impact of bad light on Test matches, the ICC has approved a trial of switching from a red ball to a pink ball before the start of a Test that is likely to be affected by bad light, subject to the prior agreement of both participating teams.*

The decision was one of several recommendations from the Chief Executives Committee that were approved by the ICC Board at a meeting in Ahmedabad on Sunday. Until now pink balls were used exclusively in day-night Test matches, which are also regularly played largely in Australia and no where else, but the trial of changing from a red ball to a pink ball during a day Test seeks to allow play to continue under lights and minimise the time and overs lost to bad light.

It is understood that the process for the playing conditions to take effect won’t be in place in time for the series between England and New Zealand from June 4. The ICC also said it would undertake research “on lighting technology for match officials and venues to reduce lost play due to poor light, with ICC co-funding R&D projects alongside Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC).”

The ICC board also approved a recommendation that will allow head coaches – or designated staff – to enter the field of play during scheduled drinks intervals and consult with their players in ODIs and T20Is. This was not permitted in international cricket – messages could only be relayed by the players running drinks – but has been a feature in franchise T20 leagues like the IPL, where coaches interact with their players during strategic timeouts.

In T20I internationals, the ICC said the break between innings would be 15 minutes, and batters would be required to be ready at the resumption of play.

In 2025, the ICC had begun trials to give bowlers leeway down the leg side for wide calls, and it has decided to permanently adopt the practice of using guide lines to help umpires adjudicate wides down the line side, especially when a batter is moving around his crease.

And in the case of suspect bowling actions, the ICC said it would help match officials access Hawk-Eye data when considering whether to report a bowler.

[Cricinfo]