by Rex Clementine

There is a growing sense of disappointment that, after all that early promise, Kamindu Mendis has faded away somewhat. A player who brings such a multidimensional skill set should by now have cemented his place in Sri Lanka’s white ball sides. But part of the problem with our cricket has been a chronic lack of patience, compounded by some awful choices.

A case in point is Dunith Wellalage. Not many people realise that he made his Test debut two years before his T20I debut. Pramodya Wickramasinghe was the man who made that call and interestingly, he has been heavily involved in selection panels over the last decade, most of them as chairman. No wonder Sri Lankan cricket has spent so much time in the doldrums.

That is not to suggest Kapila Wijegunawardene has arrived as some sort of godsend either. In his fantasy world, Niroshan Dickwella is Alan Knott and Lahiru Kumara is Malcolm Marshall.

Coming back to Kamindu, there was a time early in his Test career when he could do no wrong. At one stage, he reached 1,000 Test runs in 13 innings, equalling Don Bradman’s remarkable feat. During that purple patch, he also scored hundreds in each innings of a Test, something Aravinda de Silva, Sri Lanka’s finest, achieved in the prime of his career.

After that spectacular start, however, Kamindu has been brought back down to earth.

The Indians worked him over with a barrage of short balls. Kamindu succeeded in depositing a few over mid-wicket, but India’s quicks refused to abandon the plan. Their persistence eventually paid off when he was caught in the deep attempting another pull.

When Kamindu fell with Sri Lanka following on, there was criticism that the stroke was unwarranted given the precarious situation the team found itself in. That criticism intensified when a bunch of younger players subsequently dug in, kept India on the field for 240 overs and denied them victory to secure a hard fought draw.

Head Coach Gary Kirsten later elaborated on the freedom given to players to play the strokes that bring them runs without fear of failure. Kirsten’s view was that a player could perhaps minimise the risk involved, but certainly should not completely put away a productive stroke.

Given the prolific start he had made in Test cricket and the package he offered as an all-rounder in the white ball formats, it was only natural that an IPL deal came his way. Kamindu signed up with Sunrisers Hyderabad and made a handful of appearances for them.

It was around this period, however, that some began to notice a change. His attitude was considered indifferent in certain quarters and by last year, there were concerns that he had become something of a disruptive influence within the side. Authorities identified him as one of the key instigators pushing for the team to leave Pakistan despite repeated security assurances from the Pakistani government.

That episode cost his schoolmate the captaincy of the national team, while Kamindu himself was dropped from the T20 side before earning a recall shortly before the World Cup.

At training, though, Kamindu is said to be meticulous. He pays attention to the smallest details and is extremely organised in his preparation. In the middle of a white ball series, for instance, if the entire team is working on the sweep, Kamindu will still find extra time to go through his own routine in addition to whatever the batting coach has prescribed.

He is also not afraid to experiment.

This domestic season, Kamindu opted to move up the order rather than remain in the middle order and the results have been spectacular. Opening the batting on Thursday, he smashed 139 for CCC against Tamil Union.

It remains to be seen whether that domestic experiment will be carried all the way to Southampton in a week’s time, particularly with Kusal Mendis ruled out of the T20 leg of the tour.

Sri Lanka’s planning when it comes to leadership has been equally baffling. In recent years, there has been no proper succession plan for the captaincy. For some strange reason, the practice of naming a vice-captain was abandoned for a period, hardly clever planning when the idea should have been to groom future leaders.

Dhananjaya de Silva, for example, is Test captain almost by default rather than because he possesses any exceptional leadership qualities. Now, when he comes under pressure, you look around and there is hardly an obvious successor waiting in the wings.

Even next year, once the current World Test Championship cycle concludes, the cupboard looks bare. There is no clear candidate ready to take over the Test captaincy.

That was why it appeared a sensible move when the selectors named Kamindu deputy across all three formats for the tour of the West Indies in June. Yet, barely three months later, ahead of the tour of the UK, he has been replaced.

Back comes Charith Asalanka, less than a year after being sacked as captain.

It appears the selectors were concerned that the additional responsibility might affect Kamindu’s batting. He has therefore been relieved of leadership duties, with the expectation that freeing his mind will bring greater consistency with the bat.

A complete performance from UAE’s bowling unit kept their semi-final hopes alive at the 2026 Women’s T20 Asia Cup,  skittling Indonesia  for 73 and then completing the chase with six wickets to spare. They now have to beat Bangladesh on September 8 and also hope other results go their way.

UAE were on top right from the first ball courtesy offspinner Suraksha Kotte,  who starred with 3 for 16. Kotte struck with the first two balls of the innings, dismissing Indonesia opener Maria Corazon and No. 3 Ni Luh Dewi for first-ball ducks. UAE captain Esha Oza (2 for 11) then dismissed the other opener Rahmawati Pangestuti in the fourth over.

Indonesia captainN8 Puu Ayu Nanda Sakarini  top-scored with a lone hand of 39 off 52 balls, with four fours and a six, accounting for 53.4% of Indonesia’s runs. But with little support, they could not find a way back in and were bowled out for 73.

Slow left-arm spinner Heena Hotchandani (2 for 6) and seamer Samaira Dharnidharka (1 for 12) also got among the wickets. Legspinner Vaishnave Mahesh struck twice in the 20th over to clean up the tail.

UAE openers Theertha Satish and Oza put on 17 for the first wicket. After losing Theertha in the fifth over, Oza hit two boundaries in each of the sixth and eighth overs. No. 3 Rinitha Rajith then hit three fours off Sofia Velic in the ninth over.

A brief wobble followed for UAE as they slid from 62 for 1 to 68 for 4. Oza fell for a 29-ball 30 at the start of the 11th over to Ni Ariani and Velic grabbed two wickets in the 12th. However, with only six runs needed, UAE wrapped up the chase at the start of the 14th over, the tournament hosts securing two points with 41 balls to spare. This was also Indonesia’s final match of the campaign, bowing out with losses in all three games.

Scores:

UAE Women 75 for 4 8n 13.1 overs  (Esha Oza 30, Rinitha Rajith 22; Ni Riani 1-10, Sang Maypriani 1-17,  Sofia Velic 2-25) beat IndonesiaWomen  73 in 19.4 overs (N8 Putu Ayu  Nanda Sakarini 39, Desi Wulandari 12; Suraksha  Kotte 3-16, Heena  Hotchandani 2-06, Esha  Oza 2-11, Samira Dharnidarkha 1-12 ) by six wickets

(Cricinfo)

The 104th National Athletics Championship got off to an impressive start at the Diyagama Stadium, with Rasara Wijesuriya and Arunthavarasa Puvitharan producing record-breaking performances on an action-packed opening day.

‎Rasara dominated the women’s 10,000m to win the gold medal in 33:32.77 seconds, setting a new meet record in the process. G. W. O. N. Fonseka finished second in 38:25.55, while H. I. S. Fernando took the bronze in 39:00.69.

‎Puvitharan provided another record-breaking highlight in the men’s pole vault, clearing 5.10m to establish a new meet record. H. S. Eranga Janith followed with 5.00m for silver, while M. H. I. Sandaruwan secured bronze with 4.90m.

‎The men’s 10,000m produced a closely contested battle, with M. Kobinathan claiming the national title in 30:58.50. M. S. A. Fernando was second in 31:10.08, while D. P. S. S. Senanayaka completed the podium in 31:22.72.

‎As expected Madushani Herath secured the women’s triple jump title with a best effort of 13.60m, finishing ahead of I. S. W. Arachchi, who recorded 13.13m. G. I. S. Lankathilaka took third with 13.00m.

‎In the men’s shot put, Suseenthirakumar Mithunraj produced a winning throw of 16.41m to take gold. W. J. R. Alwis was second with 14.91m, while R. S. Jayawardana secured bronze with 14.47m.

‎Ovini Chandrasekara completed the women’s shot put podium-topping performance, winning gold with a throw of 12.82m. V. D. V. Gimhani took silver with 12.29m and A. D. W. Mendis won bronze with 11.84m.

‎With two new meet records already providing the opening-day highlights in thr morning, the championship has begun on a high note, setting the stage for further strong performances as Sri Lanka’s leading athletes battle for national honours.