Tuesday 15th August, 2006 19

by Renuke Wijayawardhane argue that if Bandara was included in hat makes a great Test match? the team would not have had Under-15 Division IV Good , clever , to battle it’s tooth and nail to win the Wmemorable fightbacks, series. enthralling moments, two teams battling Who’s getting bored If ’ resurgence in bat- Who’s getting bored ting in the recent past was a revelation it out of their skins, well, the list can be Seethawaka MV endless. But above all a great Test match the same cannot be said about his bowl- is a statement for maintaining stan- ing. He has only taken 17 in his dards, something unique to . last 8 tests at 39.64 - hardly the kind of It should build up the momentum, allow performance expected from the coun- going great guns it to grow on you slowly and then bring try’s premier paceman. The same with Test cricket? applies to . Although by Reemus Fernando it to a climax, creating a lasting memory with Test cricket? he has shown good temperament in his thereafter. To me, that’s what a great If you are measuring the batting, his record is hardly impressive Test match is all about. If Edgebaston stances. From a comfortable 94 for 1 they overall performance of the team as well. strengths of new school cricket sides 2005 was the greatest Test match of all when it comes to his main task, bowling. slumped to 201 for 5. Then came another One cannot be found fault with for draw- then the new kids on the block time, P. Saravanamuttu 2006 has to be recovery and by lunch on the 5th day ing a parallel between Mahela Maharoof has only taken 12 wickets in Seethawaka MV Awissawella would the greatest involving Sri Lanka. they were breathing comfortably at 333 Jayewardene and at this his last 9 tests at a costly average of come first in your list this season as The second Test between Sri Lanka for 6, just 19 runs short with 4 wickets in stage. They are both dynamic, natural 53.66. Comparatively and they are going from strength to and South Africa played at P. hand. However there was one final twist leaders who have a very positive have come up with Saravanamuttu stadium had it all. A to this saga. South Africa made a spec- approach towards their game. Both of improved performances in the bowling strength having completed their first masterful from a rejuvenated tacular comeback after lunch, which saw them lead from the front and refuse to department. round matches of the Inter School Sri Lankan , an exhibition of 3 wickets falling as the suspense reached compromise. As frontline batsmen they It is a question of realizing your main Under-15 Division IV,unbeaten. While quality by a genius, an a climax. Ultimately it was left to the Sri can be aggressive and also be reliable at role in the team and living upto it. It scoring 300 runs in an innings in excellent spell of fiery pace bowling by Lankan last pair to score the winning the same time. would be unwise to get the supplemen- three out of four matches, they did the 2nd ranked bowler in the world, a runs, which they did to seal off a memo- Of course a Sri Lankan victory is a tary roles mixed up with the primary well in the bowling department as display of attacking batting by the mid- rable win. The beauty of this Test match near impossibility without a big contri- task of a player. It is fine to improve well to record two outright victories dle order batsmen of both sides - was that the winner was revealed only at bution from . He your batting as a bowler/bowling all and two first innings wins. ing in three fantastic century partner- the very last moment. continues to torment the South rounder, but not at the cost of your pri- While right arm paceman Aloka ships, breathtaking slip catching in the The only sad part in this match was Africans. 104 out of his 657 test victims mary chore, which is penetrative bowl- Malshan has been the bowling spear- dying moments of the game and to it that there was only one winner who took happen to be South Africans; this clearly ing. This is one difference we see head for Awissawella lads with a rich between the Australians and others. The all scores over 300 runs in each of the it all in the end. Perhaps a tie would shows the weakness in their batting haul of 24 wickets in four matches, Aussie bowlers, such as four innings of the match - all contribut- have been a more fitting result for the against quality spin bowling. But the big skipper Sachith Wickramasinghe was and in particular, have ing to a classic Test match. simple reason that both sides did not question is for how long are we going to the chief anchor bat with a tally of In terms of suspense and drama this improved their batting whilst maintain- deserve to lose such an enthralling con- rely on Muali to win Test matches? Are over 300 runs. Test match has to be right up there. It test. If Test cricket could maintain the we expecting Murali to bowl 80 overs in ing their standard in bowling. Paceman Malshan picked up eight saw fortunes fluctuating from one team kind of standard that we saw at P. Sara each Test? What about support for him? should realize his wickets and ten wickets in their to the other in a fascinating manner. It stadium, it is not difficult to create a In this context the selection of worth in the team and adjust his game matches against Dudley Senanayake was an absorbing and a gripping contest mass towards Test cricket, which Prasanna Jayewardene as the according to the situation. Building a and Dharmaraja Vidyalaya, where both teams refused to give up is dwindling rapidly in this country. Test keeper will come into close scrutiny. It is Test innings is not all about trying to from hopeless positions on many an cricket, in this form, is no longer boring. doubtful whether his wicket keeping is launch a rollicking start. And at the Piliyandala respectively to guide occasion. First it was South Africa who If there was one man who was any better than ’s. same time he should realize that there is them to outright victories. recovered from 70 for 4 to 361 all out. responsible for bringing this win for Sri Jayewardena had a few lapses in the two a way of treating different bowlers. You Right hander Wickramasinghe hit Then Sri Lanka followed suit – from a Lanka it had to be the captain Mahela Tests and his glove work behind the don’t treat the same way a fine century (against Dharmaraja precarious 85 for 5 they ended up with Jayawardene. In terms of value his mas- stumps was also rather untidy. The rea- you treat Kabir Ali. Vidyalaya) and two half tons in his 321. In the second innings South Africa terful 123 in the second innings of this son for this may be the lack of consis- The Ashes 2005 was a fine example as tally of over 300 runs. were sitting pretty at one stage when Test match can be rated even higher tent exposure at this level. In spite of his to how Test cricket should be played. they were 119 for 1, a healthy lead of 159 than the 374 he scored at the SSC in the substantial contribution with the bat The 2nd Test between Sri Lanka and Beat Dudley Senanayake College outright runs with 9 wickets in tact, during the 1st Test. His consistency in the recent one feels that Prasanna Jayewardene’s South Africa was also in the same SCORES afternoon session on the 3rd day. past has been a revelation. It is refresh- inclusion in the team has upset the bal- league. As this match amply demonstrat- Seethawaka MV 346 for 8 in 34 overs (Nuwan However they were restricted to 311. Sri ing to see that Mahela is finally living ance composition of the side. It has defi- ed, Test cricket, when it's played in this Shanaka 58, Aloka Malshan 84, Denuwan Rangana Lankans were set a winning target of upto his true potential. The impact of nitely prevented the inclusion of ferocity and competitiveness, can hold 58, R. Samadi 35; M.A.U. Kavinda 2/38) 352, a daunting task under any circum- Mahela’s brilliance is mirrored in the in the team. Some the audiences thoroughly absorbed even Dudley Senanayake 91 in 30 overs (K.G.D. for a period as long as five days. Kaushalya 24; Aloka Malshan 3/20, Nipun Theekshana 2/02, Denuwan Rangana 2/02) and 90 in 27 overs (M.A.K. Kavinda 20; D.P.S. Wickramasinghe 4/15, Aloka Malshan 5/34)

SLC Cricket Academy Beat Dharmaraja Vidyalaya, Piliyandala SCORES beats fighting Victorian The greatest Seethawaka MV 306 for 8 in 34 overs (Chanaka The greatest Welikala 58, K.D.S. Perera 21, Sachith Wickramasinghe 118, Mohamed Ramesh 20, Aloka Cricket Academy Malshan 20, K. Lakmal 2/40, I. Sampath 2/59, K. Manoj 3/50) The SLC Academy team which beardedbearded Dharmaraja Vidyalaya, Piliyandala 75 in 20 overs just returned from Malaysia after (K.L. Wickramasena 41, K.D.K. Perera 2/17, Aloka remaining unbeaten in four One day Malshan 4/28, J.M.T. Sirisena 3/05) and 76 in 19 overs encounters against the national (K.L.T. Sampath 31; Aloka Malshan 6/33, Gayan team, went on to register their fifth cricketercricketer Perera 2/13) successive win in two weeks when they beat the visiting Victorian First innings win against Rajasinghe Vidyalaya Cricket Academy from Australia, on SCORES Saturday in a One-day encounter ofof allall timetime Seethawaka MV 177 for 6 in 25 overs (J.R.S. played at Bloomfield cricket Sirisena 18, N. Shanaka 18, S. Perera 39, D.P.S. ground. Wickramasinghe 73; P. Kason 3/53, S. Ruwan 2/10) W. G. Grace The visitors invited the home Hashim Amla Rajasinghe 133 in 37 overs (M.K.M. Rifky 37, P. team to take first lease of the wicket specs, the first recorded in Test history. Kasun 26; M.A. Malshan 2/45, I. N. Sirisena 6/34) by Gerry Vaidyasekera years ago still stand and will stand for looking to exploit any advantage of all time. His score of 344 for Gloucester But he earned undying fame by bringing atching South Africa's agile the heavy overnight rain. v Kent at Canterbury in 1876, is the first off a classic catch that cricket writers bearded batsman Hashim Amla The young lads who bated stub- treble century recorded in cricket. He recall as the Catch of the Century. First innings win against Wesley moving about in the deep field, bornly in the first hour of play set W George John Bonnor, of massive build Scores hit 126 hundreds between 1865 and 1906, a veteran cricket writer like myself can- the foundation for the top and mid- amassing 54,896 runs. was the giant of the Australian team Seethawaka MV 312 in 45 overs (Rajith Samadi 26, not help but remember the champion dle order batsmen to follow. In the popular Penguin Books, enti- and much feared by the Englishmen. Dulaj Shan 55, D.P.S. Wickramasinghe 96, A. Malshan cricketer of the nineteenth century. The young guns totaled up a tled Eminent Victorians, they offered In this Test, Bonnor lifted the ball so Dr. William Gilbert Grace of 28, Mohamed Ramesh 63; Denuwan Rangana 20; R. WG a chapter written by that versatile high in the sky leaving young Fred to mammoth 303 for 8 wickets in 50 Gloucester was he. He dominated Balakrishna 2/69, A. Shermin 4/38) writer, Neville Cardus. attempt the catch. Fred was like overs. Opening batsman Charith England Cricket in the nineteenth cen- Wesley 113 for 8 in 55 overs (P. Bandara 17, K. He spent an entire night attending to Casabianca — whence all but he had Sylvester laid the initial foundation tury like a colossus. He was the sole Kanagaratnam 34 n.o; D.P. Sachith Wickramasinghe a woman with labour pains, and on the fled. The batsmen had run two when with a fluent 77. And then an explo- authority and no one could question his 3/35, Aloka Malshan 4/24) next day scored a double century. Such the ball lodged in the safe hands of sive innings by top order batsman decision. was his striking physical fitness. Fred, to the delight of the large crowd. Danuka Pathirana who made 91 in In the last century,Sir Donald George The first Test to be played in England Poor Fred died a week later. It was Thurstan ‘B’ advance 72 balls with five sixes and six fours Bradman of Australia, succeeded him as was between the two old rivals, England strongly believed that Fred's heart sent the visitors on aleather hunt. the sole dictator of world cricket. He to second round and Australia at in 1860. The stopped beating as he focused his eyes The innings was also helped by frowned on Clarence Victor Grimmett, Thurstan College ‘B’ team skip- three Graces, not Faith, Hope or Charity, on the ball. Dilruwan Perera (43), and Nadeera Don Tallon, the wicket keeper and the pered by Dulana Madurasinghe, who but Dr. Edward Mills Grace, Dr. William W. G. opened batting for England in young promising Ross Gregory. They Nawela (51). Gilbert Grace and George Frederick a Test and Samuel Peter Jones, the scored a first innings victory against were dropped out of the 1938 Australian The Victorian Cricket Academy Grace, the three brothers from pace bowler opened bowling for DS Senanayake and managed to draw team to England under his captaincy. who began the run chase, despite an Gloucester. Australia. A fast rising ball from with Henegama Central and Science Once in an exhibition match, W.G. early wicket which fell in the 2nd The two doctors started the England Jonah, as Jones was popularly known, College, earned a berth in the second was out early in the innings by a over never looked back and took crept through the long flowing beard of round of the on going Inter School local fast bowler. Calmly and cooly, W.G. innings with a century stand. W.G. hit advantage of the mandatory and the six footer giant. In anger, W.G. Under-17 Division III tournament replaced the bails on the top of the the first century for England in his bap- power play overs with regard to the shouted, “Steady, Jonah. Steady.” To stumps, and with a gruff voice, shouted tism Test. He hit a glorious 152. Three field restrictions and was up with Which Jonah replied, “Sorry, Doctor, it Thurstan registered a first innings to the bowler, “The large crowd has Lankans, Brendon Kuruppu with 201 not slipped.” win against DSS. the run rate required through most come to see me bat and not to see you out, Romesh Kaluvitharane with 132 not Sorry Amla we have no bowlers of part of the innings. bowl.” The match continued as it noth- out and Tilan Samaraweera with 103 not Scores the class of Jones to work out a repeat However, the Lankans used spin ing had happened. performed this feat. Thurstan 227 for 8 decl. in 48 overs (N. Ranjan 44, performance. to their advantage to put the breaks His records set up over a hundred The youngest, Fred, obtained a pair of A. Kodituwakku 20, D.S. Madurusinghe 41, I.E. on and with regular wickets falling Samarasinghe 40, C.S Ramanayake 18, N. Perera 18; the tourists fell short of the Sandaruwan 2/20) required target, mainly due to the DSS 207 in 51 overs (A.T. Jayamanna 30, T.D. fact that many who got starts did not People’s Bank Commemorative Marathon Kariyawasam 38, M. Perera 24, P.I. Dissanayake 22, convert them to something substan- P. Anuruddha 26; D.S. Madurusinghe 3/43, N. Perera tial. 2/39, P. Ramanayake 2/44) In the bowling, left arm spinner Upul Indrasiri was outstanding tak- St. Peter’s draw ing 3 for 33 in 9.4 overs and fast bowler Tharanga Lakshitha with 2 with St. Joseph’s for 37 in 7 overs, also did well. An unbeaten 88 runs by Peterite Eventually the home team ran vice captain Srimantha Wijeyeratne out winners by 14 runs in a great and a half ton by Josephian Harin game of cricket. Silva were the highlights of their Inter School Under-17 Division I sec- SCORES ond round match which ended in a SL Cricket Academy – 303 for 8 wickets in 50 draw on Saturday. overs (Danuka Pathirana 91,Charith Sylvester 77, Nadeera Nawela 51, Dilruwan Perera 43, SCORES Jonathon Fagg 3 for 45, Brad Knowles 2 for 69) St. Joseph’s 205 in 64 overs (Harin Silva 53, Nilshan Victorian Cricket Academy – 289 all out in Perera 31, Nirmal Rajapakse 35, Ranga Perera 21; 49.4 overs. (Grant Lindsay 54, Robert Quiney Dr. P. A. Kiriwandeniya, Chairman, People’s Bank Shivanga Ranasuriya 3/27, Chanaka Fernando 3/45) 42, Upul Indrasiri 3 for 33, Tharanga Lakshitha 2 awards a trophy and a cheque to Paramasiwam St. Peter’s 163 for 6 in 39 overs (Srimantha Wijeyeratne 88 n.o; Sameera Weerasinghe 3/42) for 37.) Vigneshwaram, the winner of the Open Marathon event. Winners of the first second and third places in the half marathon event with their trophies.