Sports
Jayasuriya glad perseverance paid off
Rex Clementine in Galle
Having bowled Sri Lanka to a memorable victory over Pakistan in the second Test, Prabath Jayasuriya told the press that life had been hard for him having come to Colombo from far off Matale. Things were not going to plan for him and he had to wait patiently. But eventually perseverance has paid off for the 30-year-old.
“It’s been a tough journey for me. Coming to Colombo from Matale was a tough ask. I had to do everything on my own and didn’t have much help. You are all alone and finally you feel the pinch. There were challenges financially but I kept things to myself without burdening my loved ones at home. I just tried to play cricket putting my head down. I must say coach Dinesh Weerasinghe, who gave me the first break by taking me to Lumbini Vidyalaya, has been a huge help.”
Sri Lanka came into final the day’s play needing nine wickets to win the game and square the series. They did well to take four wickets in the morning session but still Babar Azam was holding fort.
“We knew rain was a threat. When Babar was dismissed we knew that we could pull this off. Babar is their anchor. That was the crucial wicket and once he was out we knew the others would fold,” Jayasuriya who dismissed the Pakistan captain said.
Jayasuriya’s delivery to dismiss Mohammad Rizwan was a special one. He had created doubts in the batsman’s mind by spinning the ball away and then suddenly bowled one that went straight on. The batsman expected it to turn but was completely bamboozled.
“That delivery came close to the stumps and bowled him. Usually I have been bowling wide of the crease. He was obviously playing for turn and didn’t read that one. It felt good to take that wicket as I set him up nicely.”
“From schooldays I took wickets from my arm ball. I took 100 wickets in my last season. When the ball is turning, rather than getting wickets from the ones that turn, you can take wickets with the straight one. When you spin the ball and create doubts for the batsmen, the straight ball comes in handy. It was proven today.”
Sri Lanka’s decision to delay the declaration on day four was criticized. But eventually, there was no harm done as they won with plenty of time to spare. “What we thought was that a target of 500 more than 450 is scoreboard pressure for them. The wicket was not spinning as much as we thought. We got into trouble after setting 342 in the first Test. A target of 500 means they never try to chase and only defend. So the chances of taking wickets are more as batsmen are adapting a negative tactic. I am happy with the declaration.”
An ODI between Canada and Netherlamds in King City Toronto on Tuesday was abandoned due to a dangerous pitch. The fixture was part of the ongoing ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2 competition, which is part of the qualification pathway for the 2027 ODI World Cup.
The match was abandoned just 4.1 overs into the Netherlands innings after they had chosen to bat. They were 15 for 1, with Max O’Dowd the batter dismissed for a duck in the second over. The pitch had uneven bounce and the batters were struck several times during the short passage of play.
On June 12, four days before the abandoned match, the ICC had issued a statement saying the pitch at King City that was used for an ODI between USA and the Netherlands on June 8 had been given an “unsatisfactory” rating and one demerit point.
“This was a pitch that fell below the standard expected for this level of cricket,” match referee Phil Thompson had said about the surface for the USA-Netherlands match. “Both captains expressed disappointment with how it turned out, and the match officials assessed it as ‘very poor’. The inconsistent bounce created challenging and potentially unsafe playing conditions. Taking all factors into consideration, I believe the pitch merits an ‘unsatisfactory’ rating.”
According to the ICC’s pitch and outfield monitoring process, pitches that get an “unsatisfactory” rating will be given one demerit point, while an “unfit” pitch rating will result in three demerit points for the venue. Demerit points remain active for a rolling five-year period, and an accumulation of six demerit points will result in the venue being suspended from hosting international matches for 12 months (12 demerit points will lead to a 24-month ban).
(Cricinfo)
Joshua Da Silva and Amir Jangoo have earned recalls to West Indies’ squad for the two-match World Test Championship series at home against Sri Lanka starting later this month, while the two Josephs, Alzarri and Shamar, are back after missing the tours of India and New Zealand late last year because of injuries.
Trevin Imalch had kept wicket when West Indies last played Test cricket, in New Zealand last December, but Da Silva, 33 Test matches old, has returned after scoring 996 runs across the last two seasons of the West Indies Championship. Imlach, who failed with the bat in New Zealand with a total of 81 runs across six innings – after scoring 33 runs in his only Test in India – has been named captain of a West Indies Select XI to play the Sri Lankans in a tour match in Coolidge from June 18 to 21. Roston Chase will continue to captain the Test side.
West Indies vs Sri Lanka Tests
Jangoo, dropped after only one Test appearance, in Multan in January 2025, where he scored 0 and 30, has returned to the side following a fruitful WI Championship in which he scored 411 runs in seven innings. He finished second on the scorers’ table there, only behind Da Silva, who scored 413 in seven outing. The highlight of Jangoo’s season was the 203 not out he scored for Trinidad & Tobago against Leeward Islands
The pair of Alzarri Joseph and Shamar Joseph, meanwhile, last played Test cricket during the home series against Australia in mid-2025.”Every Test series is an opportunity for us to grow as a team and strengthen our identity,” Darren Sammy, the head coach, said in a Cricket West Indies statement. “Sri Lanka are a quality side, so we know we’ll have to be at our best, but we’re excited about the challenge ahead.”For us, it’s about playing with discipline, showing character when the game gets tough, and representing the West Indies with pride. The players have been putting in the work, and we’re looking forward to putting on a strong display for our fans across the Caribbean.”
Some of the squad members are currently participating in a high-performance training camp in Antigua, which began on June 12 and will run till June 22. The members of the Test squad who were also part of the white-ball series against Sri Lanka – West Indies lost the ODIs and won the T20Is – will join the camp on June 15. The Tests will be played in North Sound from June 25 to 29 and July 3 to 7.
“This is a key component of our preparations heading into the series, providing players and coaches with valuable time to enhance and improve the skills we want to see sharpened, based on the areas we need to focus our attention on when facing this opponent,” Sammy said about the camp. “It also gives us the opportunity to put clear objectives and plans in place for the conclusion of the summer against Pakistan.
“Additionally, the four-day warm-up game prior to the series provides the chance for some of our Test hopefuls to play in high-intensity action and create the avenue for more competition within the squad ahead of the upcoming and future series.”
West Indies are currently bottom of the nine-team WTC table, having lost seven of their eight games in the ongoing cycle.
West Indies squad for Test series against Sri Lanka
Ireland Women 118/9 in 20 overs (Alana Dalzelle 14, Orla Prendergast 26, Leah Paul 10, Alice Tector 10, Louise Little 26*; Lauren Bell 1-39, Linsey Smith 1-20, Sophie Ecclestone 3-22, Charlie Dean 2-11, Dani Gibson 2-10) lost to England Women 119/6 in 17.3 overs (Dani Wyatt Hodge 16, Nat Sciver-Brunt 48, Heather Knight 26; Aimee Maguire 2-23, Orla Prendergast 2-17) by 4 wickets
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