Sports
Cricket’s Iron Lady
by Rex Clementine
The world is celebrating the election of Kamala Harris, the first female Vice-President of the US. But hey, we Sri Lankans had a woman as our Prime Minister more than half a century ago. Some of our women have been trendsetters and their visionary leadership has been remarkable and exemplary. In cricket circles, you find more and more women taking up leadership roles. Sri Lanka set the trend in appointing a woman to run one of game’s showpiece events when they hosted the World T-20 in 2012. Upeka Abeykoon is her name.
The World T-20 in 2012 is the biggest sporting event the nation has hosted so far. The men’s and women’s events were scheduled simultaneously and hosting 20 international teams is a herculean task. Upali Dharmadasa’s committee met to decide on a Tournament Director. There were other accomplished men in both cricket and corporate sectors like Sidath Wettimuny, Ajit Jayasekara, Nuzki Mohammad and Prakash Schafter to name a few in that committee and they unanimously decided on Upeka.
Ours is not an effort to say that Upali Dharamdasa was a paragon of virtue. His decision to sack Geoff Marsh took our cricket backwards and cost Sri Lanka Cricket an arm and a leg. He also conspired with a senior player against his own captain. But he needs to be given due credit for making that tough call. Upeka Abeykoon became the first woman to be the Director of a cricket tournament.
The obstacles Upeka had were many. She had only 11 months to prepare for the event. The tournament consisted double headers and hence extra dressing rooms had to be put in place at cricket centers like Pallekele and RPS. In order to cater to 20 teams, umpires, match referees and officials, the organizing arm had to make sure they reserved 800 hotel rooms in both Kandy and Colombo.
Colombo had many options but Kandy was a tough one. Upeka prevailed venturing into nearby Dambulla where you find very good hotel facilities. The idea to airlift match officials and teams to Pallekele from Dambulla was mooted but with the help of police escorts all involved in games were brought to venues in double quick time by road.
To cater to the needs of such a big contingent plus the world’s media and fans, Upeka recruited some 12,000 volunteers. Mostly school leavers, these volunteers became immensely popular among fans and overseas media as they won everyone over with the typical Sri Lankan hospitality.
Another feather in Upeka’s hat was introducing an online ticketing system for the first time in Sri Lanka. The system was not only secure but took away many hassles as well such as waiting in long queues and purchasing tickets in the black market paying through your nose. The black market mafia that frequents RPS was literally wiped out thanks to the online ticketing system and all credit to Upeka.
People often make jokes of Upeka’s height – five feet no inches. But there aren’t many individuals in the cooperate world who are as smart and as diligent as she is. Here’s an example.
Politicians often want hundreds of tickets for cricket games to be given away for kith, kin and supporters. It’s a tricky issue that Sri Lanka Cricket had been afraid to take head on for years. Upeka’s method worked. Politicians were cut to size and fair play prevailed thanks to the online ticketing system. From the Sports Minister to the ordinary cricket fan all were served with the same spoon. Sports media loved Upeka for this. Many men had failed to tackle this issue. But she came off with flying colours in her first assignment itself and for this sports media called her the iron lady for not many people take on politicians and survive.
Upeka’s theories were interesting. She believed that no one is indispensable, even herself. She told her team that even if something were to happen to her lead up to the event, the tournament had to finish successfully. The nation put out a spectacular event. The ICC congratulated SLC on a fine show.
Following the success of Upeka in other parts of the world, women were entrusted in running cricket events. Accordingly, Jennifer Nero conducted the T-20 World Cup for women in 2018 in the Caribbean and Andrea Nelson has been put in charge of Women’s’ World Cup in New Zealand in 2022.
Chamari Athapaththu is set to miss the final phase of the WPL for UP Warriorz (UPW) to join Sri Lanka on a white-ball tour of New Zealand starting March 4 in Napier. Athapaththu’s departure will be the second big blow for UPW who are already without their full-time captain Alyssa Healy because of injury.
ESPNcricinfo has learnt that as of now, Athapaththu is going to be available for UPW until February 26, which is four more games for them, before she tends to national duties. After their game on February 26, against Mumbai Indians in Bengaluru, UPW will fly to Lucknow for the final league phase of the tournament where they will play three home matches. They left Athapaththu out of the XI in the clash they lost to Gujarat Giants.
Athapaththu was named captain of Sri Lanka’s 16 member side released by SLC on Monday and the squad is scheduled to leave for New Zealand on February 22 for three ODIs and as many T20Is.
Allrounder Amelia Kerr is the only New Zealand player in the WPL this season and she, unlike Athapaththu, is going to miss the bilateral series next month to play the entire WPL, including the knockouts if MI qualify for those again. If MI make it to the final, scheduled for March 15, Kerr will also miss the first two T20is slotted for March 14 and 16 in Christchurch. Last year too, Kerr had skipped the home bilateral T20Is against England to be available for the entire duration of the WPL.
In 2024, the calendar clash between the final leg of WPL and the T20I series in New Zealand had become a much bigger issue when England captain Heather Knight (RCB) and Lauren Bell (UPW) had opted out of WPL completely to represent their national team. Coincidentally, Athapaththu had replaced Bell for UPW then.
However, since then boards like the ECB have assured their players they won’t schedule international games during the WPL, which is set to move from the current February-March window to January-February 2026 onwards, according to the new women’s Future Tours Programme (FTP). To avoid such clashes between international series and other T20 leagues, the Hundred (August) and the WBBL (November) have also been given separate windows in the FTP that runs till 2029.
[Cricinfo]
Sri Lanka Masters will lock horns with their Australian counterparts today in the semi-finals of the Over-50 Masters World Cup at the Mercantile Cricket Association grounds in Colombo – 7. The other semi-final will see England take on Pakistan across the wall at NCC. The grand final set to be played at the P. Sara Oval on Sunday.
Led by Shane Fernando and coached by Harsha de Silva, the Sri Lankan team has been a formidable presence in the tournament.
Organized by International Masters Cricket (IMC)—an Australia-based body dedicated to senior cricket—the body promotes four age group categories, ranging from Over-40s to Over-70s.
This year’s tournament has brought together 14 nations: Australia, New Zealand, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Namibia, England, Wales, UAE, Canada, USA and the West Indies and caters for over 50 players. Sri Lanka Masters have consistently participated across all age-group World Cups, underscoring their commitment to veterans’ cricket.
Previous editions of the tournament were hosted in Sydney and Cape Town. The Colombo leg commenced earlier this month, with the 14-team event broadcast live globally. In total, 56 matches were scheduled, with each innings comprising 45 overs.
Veterans’ cricket continues to gain popularity worldwide, promoting fitness, camaraderie, and a love for the game well beyond the professional years. This tournament not only offers intense competition but also serves as a testament to the sport’s enduring appeal. However, despite its significance, the Masters World Cup struggles with limited sponsorship, relying largely on self-funding and a restricted budget to stay afloat.
Sri Lanka squad:
Saman Jayantha, Rory Ingram, Indika de Saram, Ruvin Peiris (Vice-Captain), Russell Ingram, Shane Fernando (Captain), Upul Chandana, Suwanji Madanayake, Duminda Somaweera, Dilshan Amarasinghe, Ravi Perera, Dillon Fernandesz, Priyantha Rajapaksha, Chaminda Rajapaksha, Punyakantha Abeygunasekara, Renuka Nonis, Pujitha Uduwana, and Daminda Wijesekara.
Sri Lanka team for the South Asian Cross Country Championships were scheduled to leave for Pakistan early morning today. The twice postponed championship will be held in Islamabad on Sunday. The team for this championship was selected early last year.
(Seated from left) S.P. Wasantha Kumara (Team Manager), Janz Dissanayake (Coach). (Back row from left)· W.M.N.G. Abeyrathne (Senior), W.H.K. Madhushan (Junior), R.A.D. Hemantha Kumara (Senior), W. Vakshan (Senior), R. Vidushan (Junior),
S. Thudiharshidan (Junior)
Cabinet approves debt restructuring between Hungarian Export Credit Insurance Private Limited and the Government of Sri Lanka
Cabinet approval to conduct the National Productivity Award Competition
Amendments to National Transport Commission Act No. 37 of 1991 to be gazetted
-
Sports5 days agoRemarkable turnaround for Sri Lanka’s ODI team
-
Business5 days agoUN Global Compact Network Sri Lanka: Empowering Businesses to Lead Sustainability in 2025 & Beyond
-
Features5 days agoScammed and Stranded: The Dark Side of Sri Lanka’s Migration Industry
-
News6 days agoSpeaker agrees to probe allegations of ‘unethical funding’ by USAID
-
Features4 days agoDon’t betray baiyas who voted you into power for lack of better alternative: a helpful warning to NPP – II
-
Features4 days agoTwo films and comments
-
Features7 days agoClean Sri Lanka and Noise Pollution (Part II)
-
Editorial6 days agoCoal giant awakes, but uncertainty prevails