145th Battle of the Blues

by Reemus Fernando

Batsmen will be under presure when arch rivals Royal and S. Thomas’ meet in the 145th Battle of the Blues commencing at the SSC today.

After having struggled to survive on more than one occasion during this season batting lineups of both Royal and S. Thomas’ will be waiting for new heroes to emerge to meet the demands of the three-day Big Match.

Royal skippered by Sri Lanka Under 19 captain Sineth Jayawardane will be out to retain the D.S. Senanayake Memorial Shield with a line up which twice crumbled under pressure this season.

They have bounced back after the defeats at the hands of Maris Stella and Prince of Wales to avoid further trouble but they need something special from their batsmen if they are to last the full distance of the three-day match.

Royal found batting solace coming from Yasindu Dissanayake and Isula Geeganage late in the season to record a remarkable victory (after 38 years) over St. Peter’s. The duo are forming the backbone of Royal batting with Jayawardane, Ramiru Perera and Rehan Peiris who have all scored centuries this season.

The Thomians are relying heavily on their skipper Mahith Perera, Thisen Eheliyagoda and Dineth Goonawardene in the batting department. They are the only batsmen to have shown consistency, while Nathan Caldera and Akash Fernando have provided additional support. Like their opponents, Thomians too need a new hero in the batting department if the match is to last its full distance.

Bowling is Thomians forte with left-armer Abeeth Paranawidana leading with a season tally of over 60 wickets. Speedsters Nathan Caldera, Kavindu Dias and Akash Fernando have jointly accounted for over 90 wickets. The contributions made by these four bowlers were vital for Thomians’ four outright victories recorded this season.  But none of these victories have come in the tournament proper. Their only defeat at the hands of St. Sebastian’s was recorded in a tournament match and that has hampered their chances of gaining a higher position in the points table of the tournament.

For Royal, spinner Ramiru is the leading wicket taker. He is joined by Jayawardane, Yenula Bandara and Nethwin Dharmarathne and speedsters Ranuka Malawiarachchi, Dinura Senarathne and Bulan Weerathunga to make a formidable attack.

With the historic Battle of the Blues given pride of place both Royal and S. Thomas’ hardly worry about their position in the schools cricket tournaments. When the arch rivals battle both teams have unfinished duties in the country’s premier schools tournament.

Both Royal and S. Thomas’ are among the lowest placed teams in the Division I Tier ‘A’ tournament and their future in the top Tier could be decided in relegation matches as both teams are among the last four teams in their respective groups. While the Thomians are almost certain to play relegation matches, Royal have to do something special in their last tournament match or rely on favourable results in other group matches if they are to avoid relegation scares.

 Royal Team

Sineth Jayawardane (Captain), Ramiru Perera, Bulan Weerathunga, Rehan Peiris, Nethwin Dharmarathne, Ranuka Malawiarachchi, Dinura Senarathne, Ovina Ambanpola, Yasindu Dissanayake , Isula Geeganage, Yenula Bandara

S. Thomas’ Team

Mahith Perera (Captain), Nathan Caldera, Dineth Goonawardene, Senadhi Bulankulame, Kavindu Dias, Thisen Eheliyagoda, Akash Fernando, Darien Diego, Sadev Soysa, Abeeth Paranawidana, Ashen Perera