Sports
Charith Asalanka – SL’s one-of-a-kind rescue package
Charith Asalanka, midway through a follow-through of a big shot, is gritting his teeth while his bat is twisted around to face the bowler, above his head. If a seasoned cricket-watcher saw a still of this moment, they might guess that something has gone very wrong for Asalanka.
It hasn’t. Asalanka is just fine. He has just shoveled an offcutter from Shaheen Shah Afridi in the air, past mid-off for four. Not hit a four, mind. Shoveled one.
Sri Lanka’s No. 5 batter is many things. A former Under-19 captain, an occasional bowler who can be effective on turning decks (as India found out), and a reliable outfielder. But he is not a pretty cricketer. Even just within this batting group, he has none of Dhananjaya de Silva’s effortless cool, little of Kusal Mendis or Sadeera Samarawickrama’s fluency, doesn’t have the fast hands of Kusal Perera, or the efficiency of Pathum Nissanka.
We do not aesthetic-shame batters here. So we will not call Asalanka’s cricket ugly. We will instead dwell on his many qualities. No other Sri Lanka middle-order batter can find boundaries so consistently in the first 15 balls of their innings as Asalanka. In this match, he thunked Iftikhar Ahmed over the deep midwicket rope (a go-to area, early in his innings) seventh ball.
And this four, off Afridi’s offcutter, is only the second boundary Asalanka has struck in this innings, but is off his 34th ball, and takes his score to 31. This tells you the other thing you need to know about him – the man knows how to work the gaps through the middle overs. He runs his singles urgently, calls his twos early, and even in tense situations such as this, tends to have clear communication with his partners. If you’re pretty fast, pretty skilful, and pretty conscientious, do you need to bother being pretty?
On a night and early morning (this match finished after 1 am) in which the Khettarama crowd was revelling in their baila breaks, dancing at every opportunity, the papare coming out of the northern stand, the crowd did not have any particular love for Asalanka. They roared for every run off his bat, and moved their hips for every boundary, but they would have done this for any Sri Lanka batter.
Earlier in the evening, when Mendis was making his way through his vital 91, many had had his name on their lips. Later, when Sadeera Samarawickrama was hit in the helmet by an Afridi slower ball and was visibly shaken, needing the physio’s attention, the crowd began to chant, “Sadeera, Sadeera,” willing the batter to recover even while he was undergoing a concussion test. Two nights ago, Khettarama was creaming for Dunith Wellalage, who was spectacular that evening.
Asalanka, may not have ready chants just yet. What he does have is a body of work. Since the start of 2021, no batter on the planet has as many as his 1248 runs at No. 5. This is with an average of 46.22, and a strike rate of 90, if you’re wondering. And this is despite his having only made his ODI debut in late June of 2021. He is almost 300 runs clear of the next-most prolific No. 5 – no less than Zimbabwe’s Sikandar Raza.
There is enough here to seed the thought that there is no one better in this specialised position than Asalanka. He has a decent top order to protect him now, but generally a poor lower middle order with whom to forge partnerships, as was the case against Pakistan.
But there is no shortage of love for him from his team-mates. On the third-to-last ball of the innings, Pramod Madushan missed with a big heave, but made sure he grounded his bat at the striker’s end while the keeper’s underarm throw went through, so he could protect Asalanka’s wicket as Asalanka ran through to the striker’s end.
Eventually it turns out that Sri Lanka needed two to win off the last ball. And here is the moment that perfectly encapsulates Asalanka – he gets a slower ball on off stump, and instead of trying to bash it to the boundary, he calmly shuffles across, clips it behind square on the leg side where he knows there is space, puts his head down, and sprints two.
The ball does not reach the boundary, because it did not have pace to begin with, and Asalanka has not hit it particularly hard. What he has done, is put it carefully into space. So much space that the fielders in the vicinity do not even seriously give chase. There is no point. This is so obviously a shot that is going to produce two runs. It is just enough. No unnecessary risks taken. No glory shots attempted.
When the win is secured, some of Asalanka’s team-mates storm the field and plant big, wet kisses on his head. Almost all of them are six inches taller.
None of them, though, have won a tense match with a measured flick to deep backward square off the last ball, putting their team in a major final. None of them are quite like Asalanka.
(Cricinfo)
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]
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)
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]
Courtesy call by the Heads of Mission- Designate on Prime Minister
Three dead after helicopter crash in Hawaii
Woods charged with driving under influence after crash
Showers may occur at a few places in the Rathnapura, Kaluthara, Galle, and Matara districts during the evening or night
SC finds Keheliya, others, guilty of violating FRs of public through corrupt drug procurement deal
Sajith nudges govt. to follow India’s example in giving relief to consumers by slashing taxes on fuel
‘Dates have the highest sugar content to fight Coronavirus’
Sunday Island 27 December – Headlines
#SundayIsland 17th December – Headlines
Sunday Island – 28th March
Sunday Island Headlines – 21 March
Sunday Island – 21st February – Headlines
-
News3 days agoSenior citizens above 70 years to receive March allowances on Thursday (26)
-
Features5 days agoTrincomalee oil tank farm: An engineering marvel
-
News1 day agoEnergy Minister indicted on corruption charges ahead of no-faith motion against him
-
News2 days agoUS dodges question on AKD’s claim SL denied permission for military aircraft to land
-
Features5 days agoThe scientist who was finally heard
-
Features7 hours agoA World Order in Crisis: War, Power, and Resistance
-
Business2 days agoDialog Unveils Dialog Play Mini with Netflix and Apple TV
-
Sports1 day agoSLC to hold EGM in April