Sports
Cricket announces its complete line-up for the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022
Cricket is the first discipline to announce its complete line-up for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games after Sri Lanka was confirmed as the eighth team in the women’s T20 tournament.
The announcement was made jointly by the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) on Tuesday following Sri Lanka’s victory in the ICC Commonwealth Games Qualifier 2022 in Kuala Lumpur last week and the subsequent CGF ratification of Sri Lanka’s entry.
Australia, Barbados, England, India, New Zealand, South Africa and Pakistan had already qualified as women’s cricket makes its first entry into the Commonwealth Games. It will only be the second time that cricket features in the multi-discipline event after a men’s competition was part of the Games in Kuala Lumpur in 1998 and is considered a massive opportunity to bring the game to new audiences.
Shaun Pollock-led South Africa had won the gold on that occasion, beating Steve Waugh’s Australia side by four wickets in the final. ICC Hall of Famers Sachin Tendulkar of India, Jacques Kallis of South Africa and Mahela Jayawardene of Sri Lanka were among the many stars part of the Games then.
The league-cum-knockout tournament this time kicks off with a match between ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020 finalists Australia and India on 29 July, with the bronze and gold medal matches scheduled for 7 August. Barbados and Pakistan are in Group A along with Australia and India while England, New Zealand, South Africa and Sri Lanka form Group B.
The ICC, CGF and Commonwealth Games Sri Lanka congratulated Sri Lanka for their qualification and looked forward to an exciting tournament.
ICC Chief Executive Geoff Allardice said: “It’s good to have finalised the identity of the teams participating in the Commonwealth Games and congratulations to Sri Lanka for making it after playing so well in the qualifier. We will have eight of the best teams competing for the gold and I am sure we will get to watch a highly competitive tournament.
“The Commonwealth Games are an important part of the women’s cricket calendar over the next year. It is a huge opportunity for us to take cricket beyond the traditional strongholds and give more people around the world the chance to enjoy the game, whilst the players are very much looking forward to being part of multi-sport games.
“I would like to take this opportunity to once again thank the Commonwealth Games Federation for their support and hope to see some top-quality cricket at Edgbaston.”
CGF President Dame Louise Martin said: “Congratulations to the eight outstanding teams who have qualified for the women’s T20 cricket tournament at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.
“I must pay particular tribute to Sri Lanka, who secured the eighth and final spot by winning such an exciting qualifying tournament in Malaysia last week.”
“They will head to the iconic Edgbaston Stadium in Birmingham with an elite lineup featuring England, Australia, India, Pakistan, South Africa, Barbados and New Zealand.
“Cricket is a sport synonymous with the Commonwealth. We are so excited to have it back in the Games for the first time since the men’s 50 over competition at Kuala Lumpur in 1998. The debut of women’s T20 cricket will be a historic moment and a wonderful showcase of women’s sport across the world.”
Commonwealth Games Sri Lanka Secretary General Maxwell de Silva said: “We are delighted to have qualified for the Commonwealth Games women’s T20 cricket tournament.
“Our team put on a fantastic display as they won all four matches at the qualification tournament to secure the final spot at Birmingham 2022.
“I would like to congratulate Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu and the entire team as they join a world-class lineup in Birmingham for what will be a special moment for cricket and the Commonwealth Games.”
Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu said: “It’s a great feeling to have qualified for the Commonwealth Games and all of us are really excited to be part of the multi-sport extravaganza. I’m sure it’s going to be a different experience for all of us.
“We had a memorable Qualifying tournament in Kuala Lumpur and now look forward to doing well in Birmingham against the best.
“I would like to thank Sri Lanka Cricket, the ICC, Commonwealth Games Sri Lanka and the CGF for all their support.”
The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, being held from 28 July to 8 August, will see 4,500 athletes from 72 nations and territories compete across the 11 spectacular days of sport. Birmingham 2022 will be the first major multi-sport event in history to award more medals to women than men.
Apna Perera won his third title of the 110th Colombo Championships as he partnered Dhilvan Herath to beat Dumindu Dilum and Chehan Fernando in the open men’s doubles final.
Apna and Dhilvan registered 6-2, 6-2 win in the final.
Apna, the open men’s singles champion, was also the winner of the mixed doubles which was played according to round robin method. In the mixed doubles Apna partnered Inuki Jayaweera.
Results
Men’s doubles semi-finals
Apna Perera and Dhilvan Herath beat Ashen Silva and Lithum Jayabandu 6-1, 6-2
Dumindu Dilum and Chehan Fernando beat Methika Wickramasinghe and Vichinthya Nilaweera 6-3, 2-6, 10-4.
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) recently carried out a Fast Bowling Talent Search program in the Polonnaruwa District as part of its ongoing efforts to identify and nurture emerging cricketing talent across the country.
The program, held at the Royal College Ground, Polonnaruwa, attracted over 60 promising young players—both boys and girls—including school cricketers of the district. Each participant underwent skill assessments to evaluate their fast bowling potential.
Following the evaluations, 20 talented bowlers were selected for further development.
The selected players will now receive structured training under the guidance of Provincial coaches of Sri Lanka Cricket, with a focus on refining their techniques and enhancing their overall performance.
Those who continue to demonstrate consistent improvement will be given the opportunity to join SLC’s district squads, thereby becoming part of the official National Pathway Program.
This initiative is a part of SLC’s ‘Cricket Gamata’, program which aims to find talent from rural areas across Sri Lanka.
The talent assessments were conducted by Lasantha Lakmin, SLC Talent Scout for the North Central and North Western Provinces; Lakshitha Herath, North Central Provincial Women’s Coach; and Saman Senanayake, North Central Provincial Fast Bowling Coach.
The event was organized by the North Central Provincial Cricket Association under the guidance of Sri Lanka Cricket. It was managed by Krishan Anandakumar, Manager of the Center of Excellence, Dambulla.
PSL 2025 will resume on May 17, with the final on May 25. While there hasn’t yet been a public decision on the fixture list or venues, the announcement confirms the league will end a week after it was originally scheduled to.
This was announced on X (formerly Twitter) by PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi. “HBL PSL X picks up from where it left off,” he wrote in the post. “6 teams, 0 fear. Get ready for 8 thrilling matches starting 17th May, leading up to the Grand Final on 25th May. Best of luck to all the teams!”
PCB is expected to announce further details shortly, and though Naqvi’s tweet did not officially confirm it, the remaining matches are expected to be played in Pakistan. The league, which was postponed due to increasing cross-border tensions with India, has eight games left and the PCB, as well as several franchises, have been eager to conclude the season as early as possible.
The PSL held meetings with the franchises on Monday to discuss specific dates and venues. The most pressing issue is the availability of overseas players, with ESPNcricinfo understanding a significant number are unlikely to return. The asymmetry of player availability may also impact squads, with some franchises more confident about overseas players rejoining than others. To mitigate that, PCB has also considered a replacement draft to make up the numbers.
This also confirms that Bangladesh’s tour of Pakistan will not stick to its original schedule. The final of the PSL takes place on the day Bangladesh were to play their first T20I against Pakistan, in Faisalabad. BCB has said it is in active and ongoing discussions about the tour.
(Cricinfo)
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