Weera Puran Appu Model School, Idama Moratuwa under 13 Division Three cricket team 2018/2019: Seated (From Left) E. A. Sahan (Captain), Lahiru Madushanka (Coach), Mrs. A. S. P. Nayanakanthi (Deputy Principal), Deepal Mendis, (Principal), Mrs. M. A. D. R. Dilhani Gunathileke (Deputy Principal), Kapila Lankeshwara (Master-in-charge of cricket), Samiru Sulakshana (Vice Captain). Back Row Standing (from left) – Senura Nimthera, Subash Sanjula, Akash dilhara, Dakshinu Keshitha, Shenal Sasmika, Dinidu Nehara, Vihanga Nethsara, Sandaru Madushanka, Mohomed Sahil, Ayuon Nashen, Nishada Deeshana. Picture by Dilwin Mendis Moratuwa Sports Special Correspondent

Weera Puran Appu Model school Idama, Moratuwa has qualified for the third round of inter schools under 13 division three cricket tournament conducted by Sri Lanka Schools Cricket Association for the Singer Trophy.

They are captained by E. A. Sahan while his deputy is Samiru Sulakshana. In the first round they played four matches and in the second round they participated in three matches. The third round will be on knock out basis.

The encouragement and the guidance they are receiving from the Principal Deepal Mendis, Coach Lahiru Madushanka and master in charge of Cricket Kapila Lankeshwara carried a long way for their success. 

Wellington, Sunday: A commanding knock of 90 by Ambati Rayudu saw India wrap up their one-day international series against New Zealand 4-1 when they won Sunday's final match in Wellington by 35 runs.

Rayudu rescued India from a disastrous start when the visitors were four for 18, steering his side to 252.

New Zealand's top order also went cheaply, before a 67-run stand by Kane Williamson and Tom Latham for the fourth wicket. But after they went in quick succession Yuzvendra Chahal led a spin assault that saw the hosts all out for 217, with Chahal taking three lbw decisions for 41.

When Rohit Sharma won the toss and elected to bat the pressure was on India to bounce back from their paltry 92-run defeat in the fourth ODI.

For a time it looked as if another failure was looming when Matt Henry and Trent Boult ripped out the first four wickets in under 10 overs.

But when the swing bowlers were taken out of the equation, Rayudu and Vijay Shankar toyed with the attack as New Zealand used another five bowlers in a fruitless search for a wicket. They put on 98 for the fifth wicket before Shankar was run out at 45 through miscommunication.

Rayudu faced 84 deliveries to reach 44 and only 27 balls for his remaining 46 runs in an innings that included eight fours and four sixes.

He had a life on 60 when dropped by Boult and was eventually removed when Henry, New Zealand's most successful bowler, came back for his second spell.

Hardik Pandya provided late fireworks for India with 45 off 22 deliveries, while Henry finished with four for 35.

The New Zealand top order did not fare well with Colin Munro, recalled to replace an injured Martin Guptill, bowled on 24 after failing to make the most of his lifeline.

Ross Taylor faced four balls for one run before he was given out lbw and walked off without seeking a review only for television replays to show the ball would have missed the stumps.

It left New Zealand at three for 38 when Latham joined Williamson and grafted away for more than 15 overs.

Williamson went for 39 and Latham followed three overs later for 37.

James Neesham threatened to get New Zealand up to their target when he whacked 44 off 32 deliveries before inexplicably running himself out.

When India fruitlessly appealed for a leg before decision, Neesham stepped out of his crease in search of a possible leg bye, unaware the ball had been picked up by wicketkeeper MS Dhoni who had an easy shot at the stumps.

The series now moves on to three Twenty20 matches beginning in Wellington on Wednesday. AFP

EDINBURGH, Saturday - Blair Kinghorn became the first Scotland player to score a hat-trick of tries in the Six Nations and its five-team predecessor for 30 years in an opening 33-20 win at home to Italy on Saturday.

The Scots led 33-3 with 10 minutes left, but the Azzurri avoided a morale-sapping thrashing with three late tries.

Edinburgh wing Kinghorn scored twice in the first half and once after the interval to bridge a three decade gap back to March 4, 1989, when Iwan Tukalo claimed three tries in a Five Nations win over Ireland at Murrayfield.

Full-back Stuart Hogg and replacement centre Chris Harris also crossed as Scotland won a seventh successive home game in the Six Nations, their longest such run in the championship since 1975.

"We took our chances when they were available and it was brilliant to get a couple of tries out of it," Kinghorn told the BBC.Reigning champions Ireland are sure to pose a sterner test next Saturday but coach Gregor Townsend had reason to be happy with a seventh successive Scottish victory against Italy, who line up against Wales in Rome next Saturday looking to end a record run of 18 successive defeats in the Six Nations.

Italy coach Conor O'Shea and captain Sergio Parisse, making a record 66th Six Nations appearance, were left pondering what might have been after scrum-half Guglielmo Palazzani and wings Edoardo Padovani and Angelo Esposito all scored tries in a late attacking flurry.

"Against quality opposition like Ireland, we can't release a Test match like that," said Townsend. "We were well in control and just gave Italy momentum by being less aggressive and slipping off tackles."AFP

DOHA, Saturday - Qatar's victorious Asian Cup football team returned home to Doha to a rapturous welcome on Saturday, greeted by the country's ruler and hundreds of thousands of fans.

Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani -- who happily high-fived children while waiting for the team to arrive -- met the players as they landed to kick-start a second straight night of wild celebrations in Doha.

"I am very happy to see the people celebrating with us, we realise how big what we did is," said coach Felix Sanchez.

"When you win a trophy like that you feel very proud, to see that the hard work sometimes gives you the reward."

The players were also greeted by other members of the royal family, and the head of Qatar Airways, Akbar al-Baker, who supplied the plane for the team to travel back from Oman.

Their aircraft was given a fly-past by Mirage jets, there was a military band, and the squad were presented with garlands as they finally disembarked.

Amid chaotic scenes players and staff were mobbed by fans, friends and family before getting on a specially decorated open top bus to begin the long crawl into Doha to meet the huge numbers who had waited patiently for them to arrive.

"I am proud to make these people happy," said Ali Almoez, the tournament's top scorer. "I am proud of this thing and all the players are."

He added: "For 40 years Qatari people did not celebrate, now we will celebrate for the next four years and not stop."- AFP

Since breaking into the Sri Lanka team six years ago Angelo Perera, NCC’s powerful middle-order batsman has had only limited opportunities of representing his country. To be precise he has in those years appeared in only 4 ODIs and 2 T20Is.

So what better way to make the national selectors sit up and take notice of him than to come up with a unique batting performance which only one man before him has achieved in the entire history of the game.

On Friday Perera scored 201 for NCC in their 4-day Premier League Tier A Super 8 match against arch rivals SSC at the historic P Sara Oval, venue of many memorable matches helping his club to a total of 444. But when SSC surpassed that score by 36 runs making 480, there was nothing left in the game for NCC.

“We were actually planning on declaring but after that we decided to bat on because we didn’t have any chance of winning the tournament,” said Perera.

That late decision enabled Perera to create history as NCC went onto notch up a massive 579-6 in their second innings on the final day (Sunday) with Perera contributing a memorable 231 off 268 balls. NCC were wobbling at 44-3 when Pathum Nissanka (165) a potential Test opener and Perera came together in a match-saving fourth wicket stand of 267 to ensure a draw.

Scoring two double hundreds in a first-class match has been achieved only once in history by Kent’s 23-year-old Arthur Fagg when he cracked 202 not out against Essex at Colchester in 1938 to follow his 244 on the first day of the match

“Actually I had no clue about the record,” 25-year-old Perera told the ‘Daily News’. “To be honest I was not aware of the record. It was only after the game that my coach told me.”

This was actually Perera’s third first-class double hundred of his career having earlier made a career best 244 against Air Force in 2015. However he had shown a penchant for making double hundreds at an early age having scored two for his alma mater St Peter’s College Bambalapitiya at under 14 level and one at under 19.

The ongoing season said Perera is easily his best. “Midway through the season I had to break away from domestic cricket and take part in the Sri Lanka ‘A’ team. I had a decent outing against Ireland ‘A’. It seems quite a good season for me so far. I would consider this as my best season if you look at my scores with the ‘A’ team and for NCC I have done pretty well and I don’t think I’ve had a better season.”

In six matches for NCC this season Perera averages 88.20 with 882 runs inclusive of four hundreds. Against Ireland ‘A’ in the first unofficial test at Hambantota which Sri Lanka ‘A’ won he scored an authoritative 127 off 161 balls. Overall he has a first-class average of 47.54 with nearly 7000 runs and 18 hundreds.

“At the moment I am very hungry for runs. I am also hoping that I will get a national call and I am working hard towards it,” said Perera. “Any player’s dream is to play for the country. To represent the country the best thing is to perform in domestic cricket because that’s the only opportunity we get.”

He has one more match for NCC before the season ends and he hopes to make an impact on that as well.

Initially Perera had an aggressive approach to his batting and it was no surprise to see him being picked to represent his country in the two shorter formats – 50 overs and 20 overs in the initial part of his career.

“I used to be a very attacking player but now with time, age and maturity I’ve decided that it is not the best. I have been building my innings very steadily. Credit should go to Mr Ruwin Peiris and club coach Duminda Perera, and also the ‘A’ team coaching staff. I have been working with Lanka de Silva and Avishka Gunawardene for some time. The few technical changes I’ve made and the work that I have put in with them, plenty of hours, has paid off,” said Perera.

“Firstly, I was not happy to make any changes but I realized that what they were saying was very accurate. I am glad I made those changes and glad that I met them at the right time.”

Has tying the nuptial knot seven months ago brought him a change of fortune and luck? “I don’t know. But I always believe that there is a power above me. I believe in God and there is always a correct time for everything.”

Usually it is the parents who get involved in the career of their son but in Perera’s case it is his 80-year-old grandfather Sivananda Raja who has followed his cricket closely.

“My parents don’t get involved at all but my grandfather is an ardent fan. He is the one who follows my career closely. If I don’t score runs he is very upset about it. He has been watching me from my college days till now. He eagerly waits for my scores to know what happened,” said Perera whose father Nalin Perera is CEO of Mobitel (Sri Lanka).

“The important advice I’ve got is to make sure you grab every opportunity you get in any game of cricket. It is always a chance to prove yourself. At the end of the day if you score or not you should be happy to know that you have given 100 percent.

“If you do well or not still if you know that you have worked hard towards your goal that’s the best advice you can get.

“At the moment I am keen on grabbing any opportunity that comes my way not necessarily getting into the Test side. Any format of the game I will be happy,” he said.

Arthur Fagg of Kent celebrates scoring his second double hundred of the match against Essex at Colchester in 1938.

He was like greased lightning on the cricket field during the period 1993-2007, be it charging up field to cut a single, or swooping in from cover point to get a run out, he could even gauge the relevant speeds of the two runners and pick the end where the runner was more gullible so that he could effect a run out, every time on the field his anticipation was so good on either side whether to his rightside or left, his eagle eye would spot the ball and catch it clean as a whistle. I met the man himself Upul Chandana at his solid looking residence at Kohuwela. He still looked thin and wiry and his trade mark cheeky grin was also in evidence.

Chandana in no uncertain terms mentioned to me that he was mustard keen on fielding and once inside the ropes he always thought about attacking the ball rather than let the ball come to him. Be that as it may, when he was the 12th man in that golden era where we won the 1996 World Cup, he was itching to get to the field and was waiting for someone to get into the pavilion so that he could join the fray.

At the moment Sri Lanka Cricket has reached a nadir in all aspects of cricket. A guy like Chandana who had been hibernating coaching the youngsters for 10 long years which has been the base for youth cricketers should be propped up the ladder so that our fielders could learn a thing or two.

Chandana was born in Galle and schooled at Mahinda. He was the 9th in a family of many brothers one of them was a highly successful businessman excelling in wood carving and had a thriving business. He was the only member of his family to play cricket. Starting at Mahinda College Galle, under13 he went up to the under19 side, thereafter he joined Tamil Union Cricket and Athletic Club as most of the young budding cricketers did then, Champaka Ramanayake, Dileepa Wickremasinghe and a few others helped him to gain entry to the Wanathamulla club where he played with the likes of Muthiah Muralitharan, Niroshan Bandaratillake and Chandika Hathurusingha who captained their under 23 side which won the Yellow Pages Champions Trophy.

Now that our cricket has reached a setback, there is hardly any time to do major changes at the up and coming World Cup lamented Chandana, however he hoped that at least they will pull their socks up to do well in the end.

Even though the top team has not done well Chandana wished the backup teams such as the Emerging team and the “A” team who were doing well and advised the players to forget the past results and to play for the country. When he entered the playing arena he was determined to win for the sake of the team. He was of the opinion that if someone was reluctant to toe the line he should be shown the door even if that person was the best player and he stated that once a decision was made to take disciplinary action against a certain player they should not reverse it but carry it out without wavering so that the player knew that they meant business.

Chandana was of the view that SLC had a good set of coaches qualified at level 3 judging by the performance of the Emerging and the Under 19 teams guided by home made coaches. We have a local coaching set up which is highly effective where they do the levels 0, 1 and 2.

Chandana at present is in charge of the Sri Lanka under 19 team as the unsung fielding coach and Hashan Tillakaratne and Chaminda Vaas are the others in the set up.

Chandana has been the under 19 fielding coach for the last 10 years and has shown good results. A classic example was Kusal Mendis. When Chandana took Kusal under his wing he was a ’keeper but then he became a brilliant fielder anywhere in the park. He had other charges as well in Dhananjaya de Silva, Niroshan Dickwella and several others who play at national level now. In just a short period Chandana has done wonders to them.

He stated that for the whole system to function smoothly the coaches had to do a good job not only in fielding but in batting and bowling as well. Chandana said by being the No. 1 under 19 team in Asia was not enough but we should aim even higher to become the No. 1 under 19 side in the world. His present job is hard he pointed out because in a short period of time say one and a half years he cannot produce the real article. Another tough issue for the fielding coach was that he had to deal with the whole squad of 15 players. Another case in point was that school cricket should pay more attention to fielding. The modern game has many unorthodox shots such as the reverse sweep and Dilscoop and hence we needed all round fielders to block all the large variety of shots. Therefore fielding is of utmost importance.

Chandana was a cricketer who never rested on his comfort zone and who always raised his bar by trying to do the impossible.

2018 – India’s under 19 tour to Sri Lanka - The two 4day games - 9 catches and 4 run outs and in 5 ODI’s - 12 catches, 3 stumpings and 2 run outs.

2018 - Asia Cup in Bangladesh -23 catches and 5 run outs.

2018 - Bangladesh under19 tour to Sri Lanka- 14 catches, 1 stumping.

2019- Australia under 19 tour to Sri Lanka -3 day game -10 catches, 3 ODI’s - 9 catches, 3 stumpings, 3 run outs.

This is only a summary of what he has performed over the last 10 years, although he has done much more which has not been highlighted.

Chandana stated that we have good talent in our country if guided in the correct way we can reach the glory of the 1996 team of which team he was a member. He is the ideal example for budding young cricketers.

Canberra, Monday: A resurgent Mitchell Starc took five wickets as Australia wrapped up a confidence-boosting 2-0 series thrashing of Sri Lanka Monday, with the tourists skittled for 149 in the second Test at Canberra.

In front of a sparse crowd on day four, Sri Lanka resumed on 17 without loss, needing a daunting 516 to win and ending 366 short.

There was little resistance from the under-strength visitors who wilted under a pace onslaught led by spearhead Starc, who ended with 5-46 and took 10 wickets in the game as he emphatically bounced back from a lean spell.

“It’s nice to get some reward. I’ve said all summer this group has been working really hard,” said skipper Tim Paine. “I think we’re starting to build towards something so it’s great to get some reward for the work we’ve been putting in.”

Mitchell Starc snapped up 10 wickets in the match to recover from a lean spell and wilt Sri Lanka under a pace onslaught. AFP

He was especially pleased with his bowlers, who worked well as a unit.

“The wicket didn’t offer a lot but they kept smacking away and bowled beautifully. For our group to get some belief out of this will be excellent moving forward.”

Paine set the big run chase after declaring Australia’s second innings at 196 for three, following their mammoth first innings 534 for five declared. Sri Lanka were bowled out for 215 in reply.

“We were outplayed as a team in all departments,” Sri Lankan skipper Dinesh Chandimal said.

“Credit goes to Australia. They have played some outstanding cricket throughout the series,” he added.

“It was really tough. Especially in the last six months we couldn’t get the right combination to finalise our best XI.”

Dimuth Karunaratne and Lahiru Thirimanne had survived a tough six overs on Sunday ahead of stumps, and they resumed with hopes high of taking the game into a fifth day to provide momentum ahead of an upcoming Test tour to South Africa.

But Karunaratne failed to add to his overnight eight with Starc, bowling at close to 145 kph (90 mph), clipping his leg bail in only the third over of the day.

It was a big blow with the experienced opener their best batsman in the first innings before he was struck in the head by a Pat Cummins bouncer.

Chandimal also failed to deliver, struggling against the speed and bounce of a fired-up Starc, bowling at perhaps his best over the past year.

He poked at an away swinger and was caught at slip for four by Marnus Labuschagne, capping a miserable series in which he managed just 24 runs in two Tests.

Niroshan Dickwella, promoted to number four from his usual six, was building a handy partnership before Thirimanne was removed by Cummins for 30.

Thirimanne tried to fend off a short ball but it ricocheted off his bat and Cummins took an athletic diving catch.

It went from bad to worse with Dickwella bowled by Starc for 27 just before lunch and Kusal Perera, cleared to play after taking a hit on the helmet on Sunday, out for a golden duck next ball.

Dhananjaya de Silva fell soon after the break and while young gun Kusal Mendis added a brisk 42, the tail soon folded.

Dire run

It extended a dire run of Test results for troubled Sri Lanka, who were missing their three injured strike bowlers in Canberra.

They have now lost a home series to England 3-0, then away to New Zealand 1-0 to go with their two defeats in Australia.

Australia won the first Test in Brisbane by an innings and 40 runs and end their summer on a high after losing an intense home series against top-ranked India.

While they were outplayed by Virat Kohli’s men, they at least broke a century drought stretching back to October in Canberra, with Joe Burns, Travis Head, Kurtis Patterson and Usman Khawaja all cashing in.

Their knocks put them in prime position for the Ashes tour to England -- their next Test assignment later this year, where champion seam bowlers Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad await.

Starc’s Canberra performance cemented his place in the side, while Richardson emerged as a handy compliment to fellow pace bowlers Josh Hazlewood and Cummins. AFP

Canberra, Monday: Sri Lankan skipper Dinesh Chandimal insisted Monday his battered team can lift their game and be competitive on the upcoming tour to South Africa despite being outplayed over two Tests by Australia.

The visitors lost the opening day-night Test in Brisbane by an innings and 40 runs inside three days and followed it up by a 366-run thrashing on day four in Canberra.

It extended a dire run of results for troubled Sri Lanka, who have been hit by injuries and off-field dramas.

They have now lost a home series to England 3-0, then away to New Zealand 1-0 to go with their two defeats in Australia.

The first Test in South Africa looms on February 13, with the squad flying straight there from Australia this week to continue a gruelling overseas schedule.

“We are a young team and always learning how to play, especially in these tough conditions.”

“We will bounce back in South Africa,” Chandimal said

“I mean, they are three tough tours, we have finished two and now South Africa.

“South Africa is similar to these conditions and with very good bowlers. We know that as a team we have to play in tough conditions and we need to adjust to those conditions and step up as a team.”

They came into the Canberra Test without injured pace spearheads Lahiru Kumara, Dushmantha Chameera, and Nuwan Pradeep, who were all badly missed with Australia smashing four centuries.

They were also without all-rounder Angelo Mathews, with the added off-field distraction of an ongoing ICC corruption investigation into Sri Lankan cricket.

Despite this Chandimal said that while the team has been transitioning in recent years, and is still young, it was time for them to start performing.

“If you get the chance to play for your country you have to take it with both hands,” he said.

“Now as a team, we have to step up.

“In our young group, some of them have played more than 30 Tests so that means they are still very young, but in the international arena they are really experienced.

“So now this is the time to play your game and play for your team.”

Asked to outline the positives Sri Lanka could take from the Australia series, Chandimal admitted there weren’t many.

“The only positive was our slip catching from our fast bowlers,” he said.

“I don’t want to talk about the negatives,” he added. “We all know what went wrong as a team and I’m sure the boys will learn from that and they will come good in South Africa.” AFP

Ananda Maithriya Central College Balangoda beat Madeena Central College Madawala Bazar in their ‘Singer Trophy’ Under 19 inter Schrools Cricket tournament match played at Balangoda yesterday.

Match drawn between Maris Stella College Negombo and Devapathiraja College Rathgama due to rain at Galle international cricket stadium. Only 43 overs played in day two due to rain.

* At Galle. Match drawn.

Maris Stella Negombo: 222 in 52 overs

Devapathiraja Rathgama: 90 (76/5 o/n) in 39.5 overs (Jeewaka Shasheen 30, Ravindu Fernando 4/36) and 43/5 in 29.2 overs (Ravindu Fernando 2/15)

* At Balangoda. Ananda Maithreya Central Balangoda won by 1 run.

Ananda Maithreya Central Balangoda: 140 in 40.3 overs and 159 (18/2 o/n) in 62.4 overs (Theekshana Molamure 43, Idusara Karunathilaka 28, Nimesh Kumarathunga 21, Munshith 4/44, Sahl 3/47)

Madeena Central Madawala Bazar: 98 in 37.3 overs (Mohommed Moshen 28, Mohommed Munshit 20, Indusara Karunathilake 4/22, Shashika Thiwanka 4/32) and 200 in 51 overs (Mohommed Munshif 24, Kaleel Haridh 33, Mohammed Yasir 63, Nimesh Karunathunga 6/87)

* At Balapitiya. Match drawn.

Siddhartha Balapitiya: 150 in 43.1 overs and 200/9 decl. (33/0 o/n) in 44 overs (Nadeesha Viraj 63, Dineth Dinal 28 n.o., Miyuru Dilshan 25, Thushara Dilshan 21, Sihina Dewmith 5/51, Lakshan Chamika 3/26)

Methodist High School Moratuwa: 107 in 44.4 overs (Sandun Tharanga 39, Shashindu Nimesha 3/14, Thushara Dilshan 2/14, Ravindu Madushan 2/17, Dineth Dinal 2/27) and 34/3 in 9 overs (Hasantha Madhusanka 20 n.o.)

On Day One

* At BRC. Isipathana Colombo: 206 in 66.3 overs (Leshan Amarasinghe 58, Madushika Sandaruwan 37, Ravindu Rathnayake 32, Mandipa Gunasekara 29, Husindu Nisshanka 2/13, Manoharan Pavithran 2/16)

St. Sylvester’s Kandy: 23/1 in 8 overs

* At Rathmalana. Moratu Vidyalaya: 190 in 65.2 overs (Nishan Madhushka 90, Rashan Kavishka 23, Ashen Adithya 22, Awantha Dulakshana 20, Shonal Gamage 4/71, Dhanuka Nimmana 2/9, Pethum Botheju 2/28)

Mahanama Colombo: 51/2 in 24 overs (Pawan Rathnayake 27 n.o.)

* At Matara. Rahula Matara: 261 in 79 overs (Ruvinda Dilshan 48, Chamuditha Dilshan 41 n.o., Bhagya Himath 39, Ovin Bopage 31, Sasith Manuranga 29, Binara Sanketh 26, Pasindu Avishka 23, Rohan Sanjaya 4/76, Ramesh Madushanka 2/27)

Tissa Central Kalutara: 76/5 in 29 overs

* At Panadura. Mahanama Panadura: 65 in 28.5 overs (Ravindu Sahan 20, Nishad Chamuditha 6/25, Uvindu Harshika 4/9)

CWW Kannangara Central Mathugama: 107/8 in 40 overs (Kavindu Dewmina 25, Uvindu Harshika 20 n.o., Dilshan Madhusanka 2/12, Nethpahan Fernando 2/15)

* At Kalutara. Pothuwila MV Kalutara: 77 in 26.1 overs (Venura Kumara 4/23, Madhushan Chathuranga 3/04, Maleesha Sahan 2/3)

Welapura MV Kalutara: 30/4 in 18.3 overs (Palitha Silva 2/2). YK

Dubai, Monday: West Indies captain Jason Holder has been suspended for the third and final Test against England due to his team’s slow over-rate during their victory in Antigua last week, the ICC announced on Monday.

Cricket’s governing body banned Holder, despite the hosts playing four seamers and the regular fall of wickets as England were bowled out for 187 and 132.

The ICC said in a statement that the Windies were two overs short of their target for the match.

Holder was previously found guilty of a slow over-rate during his team’s third Test defeat by Sri Lanka last June.

“(Match referee) Jeff Crowe... imposed the suspension on Holder after the Windies were ruled to be two overs short of their target after time allowances were taken into consideration,” the ICC said.

The 27-year-old all-rounder, who has taken seven wickets and scored 229 runs in the series so far, was also fined 40 percent of his match fee, while all the other Windies players were fined 20 percent each.

The Windies, who also thrashed England by 381 runs in the first Test, have sparked hopes of an upturn in form with their excellent performances against a side ranked five places higher than them at third in the Test rankings.

The final Test in St Lucia starts on Saturday, with the Caribbean side looking for a famous series whitewash. AFP 

The Observer-Mobitel Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year has obtained greater attention with only a month to go for the commencement of the much awaited big matches from early next month.

Taking about big matches, every school has their own big match heroes who are well known in their schools’ big match history. Though most of them end their glory after school careers, there are those rare ones who take that pride to the world, excelling at international cricket world.

One such star who has marked his presence from school level to international world, is former Sri Lanka captain and ex-ICC Match Referee Roshan Mahanama. Having made his mark form his days at Nalanda, he is a classic example to all.

Mahanama believes that there should be a balance in the number of matches a school team has to play during a season if the quality of the game is to be maintained.“I agree that we need to give opportunities to outstation teams. But that should not be done at the expense of quality,” Mahanama said in a recent interview.

The Observer-Mobitel Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year is sponsored by Sri Lanka’s national mobile service provider SLT Mobitel.

The former Nalanda College captain speaking further said that the country’s first and the premier school cricket award - Observer Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year, has always motivated schoolboy cricketers as they look forward to be rewarded and recognized at the end of each season, for their hard work.

“These events motivated us as emerging cricketers. It is always a great motivation when you know that your achievements are being recognized,” he said.

Mahanama feels that his crowning glory as the ‘Observer Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year’ in successive years (1983 and 1984), was a major milestone in his career.

“To be adjudged the best schoolboy cricketer and be honored for the hard work during the season was a great encouragement. I was privileged to receive this award as it was one of my dreams,” he said.

“Winning the Observer Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year in successive years was a memorable one and a stepping stone to playing in big the league. Being crowned the best Schoolboy Cricketer made me even more determined to work harder to reach greater heights when I first got the taste of international cricket,” he said.

“I had watched former Nalanda Bandula Warnapura in action. We had full houses for all those inter-school games and it was a passion. The school authorities too encouraged the boys to watch matches,” he added.

He said that schoolboy cricketers should be willing to make sacrifices, rather than looking for short cuts to success. “Young schoolboy cricketers must have a genuine willingness and desire to work towards their targets with dedication. They must remember that there are no short cuts for success”, said Mahanama.

He said the schoolboy cricketers during his era did not get many opportunities to play international matches at under-19 level. “I had played for Nalanda for five seasons but we had only two overseas tours. But the present day players get more and more opportunities. I wonder whether the players are making full use of these tours,” he said.

The stylish top order bat, recalling his days as a schoolboy cricketer at Nalanda College, said that it was a great feeling to have their names on the team’s fixture card.

“Even the old boys made it a point to skip all other engagements to --watch their school team in action.. It was a great honor to see our names in the fixture card - first as a player, then as a coloursman and later as vice-captain or captain,” Mahanama said.

Though Arjuna Ranatunga won the Observer Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year titles in 1980 and 1982, Mahanama was the first to win the prestigious title in successive years in 1983 and 1984. He first won the ‘Observer Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year’ title in 1983 with a rich harvest of runs with the willow. He continued to let his willow to do the talking in the following year too and his superb form won him the title for the second successive year in 1984.

Apart from Ranatunga and Mahanama, the others to win the title twice were Thilan Samaraweera (1994 and 1995), Lahiru Peiris (2004 and 2005), Bhanuka Rajapakse (2010 and 2011) and Charith Asalanka (2015 and 2016).

Mahanama urged schoolboy cricketers to work hard to achieve their targets in a disciplined manner, maintaining the high traditions of the game - instead of being ‘remote-controlled’.

It was his late father Upali Mahanama who had been a tower of strength behind the celebrated cricketer’s success story.

“He was a great source of encouragement to me. He stressed the importance of adding values and discipline to our lives. Then I was lucky to come under the watchful eyes of Lionel Sir (Lionel Mendis)”.

Mahanama recalling the early part of his distinguished career said: “He set us targets as young players and groomed us well.” Mahanama pointed out one important thing in his career. “Most importantly, we were taught to respect the game, its culture and to follow team ethics. Even the coaches and masters in charge during our time conducted themselves in an exemplary manner to earn respect. We also had the highest respect and regard for umpires,” he said.

Mahanama said that deteriorating standards in school cricket has prevented youngsters from directly marching into the national team like in the past.

“In the past a player such as Ranjan Madugalle earned his place in the national squad directly from school level. Unfortunately, we do not often find consistent players in school cricket, ready to face that challenge,” he said. Mahanama is of the view that his crowning glory as the ‘Observer Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year’ in 1983 and 1984, was a major milestone in his career.

“To be adjudged the best schoolboy cricketer and being honored for the hard work during the season was a great encouragement. I was privileged to achieve it as one of my dreams,” he said.

Mahanama, who turns 53 in May, represented Sri Lanka in 52 Tests with an aggregate of 2576 runs with four centuries and 11 fifties. His career-best innings of 225 was registered against India in 1997 while sharing a record partnership of 576 runs with Sanath Jayasuriya (340) at the Premadasa Stadium in Colombo that helped Sri Lanka record the highest team total in a Test. He made a half century in his last Test for Sri Lanka - against South Africa at Centurion Park in 1998.

Mahanama played in 213 One Day Internationals for Sri Lanka to enjoy an aggregate of 5162 runs with four centuries and 35 half centuries.

Former Sri Lanka captain and ex-ICC Match Referee Roshan Mahanama feels that there should be a balance in the number of matches a school team has to play during a season if the quality of the game is to be maintained.

“I agree that we need to give more opportunities to outstation teams. But that should not be done at the expense of quality,” Mahanama said in a recent interview.

The Observer-Mobitel Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year is sponsored by Sri Lanka’s national mobile service provider SLT Mobitel.

The former Nalanda College captain speaking further said that the country’s first and the premier school cricket award - Observer Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year, has always motivated schoolboy cricketers as they look forward to be rewarded and recognized at the end of each season, for their hard work.

“These events motivated us as emerging cricketers. It is always a great motivation when you know that your achievements are being recognized,” he said.

Mahanama feels that his crowning glory as the ‘Observer Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year’ in successive years (1983 and 1984), was a major milestone in his career. “To be adjudged the best schoolboy cricketer and be honored for the hard work during the season was a great encouragement. I was privileged to receive this award as it was one of my dreams,” he said.

“Winning the Observer Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year in successive years was a memorable one and a stepping stone to playing in big the league. Being crowned the best Schoolboy Cricketer made me even more determined to work harder to reach greater heights when I first got the taste of international cricket,” he said.

“I had watched former Nalanda Bandula Warnapura in action. We had full houses for all those inter-school games and it was a passion. The school authorities too encouraged the boys to watch matches,” he added.

He said that schoolboy cricketers should be willing to make sacrifices, rather than looking for short cuts to success. “Young schoolboy cricketers must have a genuine willingness and desire to work towards their targets with dedication. They must remember that there are no short cuts for success”, said Mahanama.

He said the schoolboy cricketers during his era did not get many opportunities to play international matches at under-19 level. “I had played for Nalanda for five seasons but we had only two overseas tours. But the present day players get more and more opportunities. I wonder whether the players are making full use of these tours,” he said.

The stylish top order bat, recalling his days as a schoolboy cricketer at Nalanda College, said that it was a great feeling to have their names on the team’s fixture card.

“Even the old boys made it a point to skip all other engagements to --watch their school team in action.. It was a great honor to see our names in the fixture card - first as a player, then as a coloursman and later as vice-captain or captain,” Mahanama said.

Though Arjuna Ranatunga won the Observer Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year titles in 1980 and 1982, Mahanama was the first to win the prestigious title in successive years in 1983 and 1984. He first won the ‘Observer Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year’ title in 1983 with a rich harvest of runs with the willow. He continued to let his willow to do the talking in the following year too and his superb form won him the title for the second successive year in 1984.

Apart from Ranatunga and Mahanama, the others to win the title twice were Thilan Samaraweera (1994 and 1995), Lahiru Peiris (2004 and 2005), Bhanuka Rajapakse (2010 and 2011) and Charith Asalanka (2015 and 2016).

Mahanama urged schoolboy cricketers to work hard to achieve their targets in a disciplined manner, maintaining the high traditions of the game - instead of being ‘remote-controlled’.

It was his late father Upali Mahanama who had been a tower of strength behind the celebrated cricketer’s success story.

“He was a great source of encouragement to me. He stressed the importance of adding values and discipline to our lives. Then I was lucky to come under the watchful eyes of Lionel Sir (Lionel Mendis)”.

Mahanama recalling the early part of his distinguished career said: “He set us targets as young players and groomed us well.” Mahanama pointed out one important thing in his career. “Most importantly, we were taught to respect the game, its culture and to follow team ethics. Even the coaches and masters in charge during our time conducted themselves in an exemplary manner to earn respect. We also had the highest respect and regard for umpires,” he said.

Mahanama said that deteriorating standards in school cricket has prevented youngsters from directly marching into the national team like in the past.

“In the past a player such as Ranjan Madugalle earned his place in the national squad directly from school level. Unfortunately, we do not often find consistent players in school cricket, ready to face that challenge,” he said.

Mahanama is of the view that his crowning glory as the ‘Observer Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year’ in 1983 and 1984, was a major milestone in his career.

“To be adjudged the best schoolboy cricketer and being honored for the hard work during the season was a great encouragement. I was privileged to achieve it as one of my dreams,” he said.

Mahanama, who turns 53 in May, represented Sri Lanka in 52 Tests with an aggregate of 2576 runs with four centuries and 11 fifties. His career-best innings of 225 was registered against India in 1997 while sharing a record partnership of 576 runs with Sanath Jayasuriya (340) at the Premadasa Stadium in Colombo that helped Sri Lanka record the highest team total in a Test.

He made a half century in his last Test for Sri Lanka - against South Africa at Centurion Park in 1998.

Mahanama played in 213 One Day Internationals for Sri Lanka to enjoy an aggregate of 5162 runs with four centuries and 35 half centuries.

The annual inter house sports meet of St.Paul's Girls school Milagiriya was held on January 31 at Havelock Sports Club grounds. The occasion was graced by the Director- Education Western Province - Srilal Nonis as the chief guest. Here the champions of St.Paul's Girls school annual sports meet Pragathi House who scored a total of 213 points receiving the trophy from the chief guest. Keerthi House was placed second with a score of 212 and Maithri House came in third with 206 points respectively. The sports meet was successfully organized by the guidance of madam principal Sumedha Jayaweera.

Picture by Indika Welagedara

Anoj Cricket Academy of Moratuwa beat G.M.A. Cricket Club by 39 runs in their inter academy under 13 cricket tournament match conducted by G. M. A. Cricket Club at Moratuwa. Altogether eight teams are participating in this 30-over cricket tournament.

Batting first Anoj CA scored 199 for 9 with Praneeth Fernando scoring 64 runs and Nishen Hiroshana claimed 4 for 32. In reply G. M. A. Cricket Academy were all out for 160 runs with Shelonnnnnn Fernando and Rashmidu Nimsana scoring 53 and 50 runs respectively and Sheron Fernando captured 4 for 35.

Chief Scores

Anoj CA - 199/9 in 30 overs - Praneeth Fernando 64, Jason Perera 32, Nishen Hiroshan 4/32, Samithu Peiris 2/31

G. M. A. CC - 160 in 28 overs - Shelon Fernando 53, Rashmidu Nimsana 50, Lukshan Perera 3/41, Sheron Fernando 4/35

Table leaders CCC, SSC, Tamil Union and Saracens SC put themselves in line to win the Major League Tier A title going into the final weekend of matches this weekend.

Only six points separate the clubs and the final weekend of matches in the Super 8 will be crucial on deciding the champions.

Meanwhile in the Plate BRC, Ragama CC and Badureliya SC are in contention to win the title.

Samsung Sri Lanka launched Galaxy M20 and Galaxy M10 smartphones that have been designed ground up in the country for young millennials. Galaxy M series smartphones come with best-in-class infinity-V display and powerful features such as dual camera with ultra-wide lens, long lasting battery, high performance processors and a new Samsung Experience UX.

“Galaxy M smartphones are powerful and stylish, and have been designed to cater to the aspirations of today’s tech savvy millennials. With these new devices, we have dialled up a really powerful experience in every dimension. Today’s millennials want a smartphone that is lightning fast, runs longer and comes loaded with latest innovations. Meaningful innovation and customer-centric approach form a part of our very DNA and the new Galaxy M series is an embodiment of that commitment,” said Shantha Fernando - General Manager and Head of Mobile Biz, Samsung Sri Lanka.

“Samsung is a trusted brand, providing customers with aspirational, great quality smartphones. The Samsung Galaxy M series will resonate well with tech savvy millennials seeking powerful devices. With this launch, we continue to build a strong portfolio in the smartphone category providing customers with a vast selection across price points,” said Thushara Rathnaweera Product Manager, Mobile Biz, Samsung Sri Lanka.

Galaxy M series is a testimony to Samsung’s deep commitment to the initiative that focuses on creating products and innovations to enhance the lives of local consumers.

Galaxy M20 comes with a true FHD+ 6.3” FHD+ infinity-V display, while Galaxy M10 has a 6.2” HD+ infinity-V display ensuring truly immersive viewing experience. Both Galaxy M20 and M10 come with Widevine L1 certification for seamless streaming of HD content through popular apps.

To ensure non-stop streaming of music and video, Samsung has packed a powerful 5000 mAh battery in Galaxy M20. It doesn’t stop here. The power management feature in Galaxy M20 boasts of a multi-layered technology system that ensures low power consumption. The type C fast charging feature ensures 3X speed as compared to the normal charging, thanks to the 15W in-box charger.

Galaxy M20 is powered by Samsung’s latest Exynos 7904 octa-core processor that enhances user experience through excellent network speed, smooth multitasking and low power consumption. Galaxy M10 is powered by Exynos 7870 octa-core processor.

Powerful dual camera is another major highlight of Galaxy M series, as today’s millennials love to click photos and make videos on the go. Both Galaxy M20 and M10 sport dual rear camera, with ultra-wide feature. Both Galaxy M20 and M10 come with a 13MP primary rear camera that has F1.9 aperture.

The secondary rear camera has a 5MP ultra-wide feature. The ultra-wide mode lets users capture more expansive photos with complete ease. It is perfectly suited for capturing landscapes, cityscapes, group photos, etc. when users want to fit a lot into one single frame.

Another crushing Test series defeat this time at the hands of the Australians only added to the mounting woes of the Sri Lanka cricket team that seems to be getting nowhere with lack of direction, purpose and discipline. On this occasion our cricketers were undone by the bounce and pace of the Australian pitches and mounting injuries to our fast bowlers didn’t help our cause either. Chairman of selectors Ashantha de Mel was quick to point out that problems the national team are encountering abroad are due to the shortsightedness of the cricket administration.

“I was watching some of the domestic club matches and the fast bowlers are bowling only about 4-5 overs so how can they bowl 20 overs in a Test match,” questioned De Mel. “When we were looking for fast bowlers to replace the injured we found out that even clubs like NCC are opening the bowling with spinners. There was a boy we were looking at Mohamed Siraj. The last match he played he was given only two overs to bowl. He had gone for a few runs in those overs and after that he didn’t bowl. Unless the bowlers are given a heavy workload at home how can they be fit to bowl in a Test? It has to be corrected from the domestic level.”

“India played four Test matches and not a single fast bowler broke down, we played two Tests and four bowlers broke down. Out of the five fast bowlers we sent four got injured and we bowled in only one innings at the Gabba,” pointed out De Mel. Nuwan Pradeep, Lahiru Kumara, Dushmantha Chameera and Suranga Lakmal were the bowlers on the injured list.

Another area that De Mel was critical of was the type of pitches prepared in domestic cricket. “The pitches prepared domestically are slow and low and it is no surprise our batsmen struggle when they come up against fast and bouncy tracks. When you are facing bowlers at 125-130kmh in Sri Lanka with no bounce and when you go and face bowlers bowling at you at 150plus kmh and he is well over six feet in height on bouncy pitches it’s a different ball game altogether.

“We have to prepare well and learn so that we can play outside Sri Lanka. Playing in Sri Lanka with four spinners and no fast bowler is not going to improve our cricket long term. Even despite preparing turning pitches we lost the Test series at home to England 3-0. The normal thinking that you should prepare wickets to suit the home side’s bowling strength didn’t quite work with England because their spinners got more wickets than ours. We played one fast bowler in one Test and he didn’t bowl even four overs. So how are you going to expect them to come and bowl 20 overs in a Test match?

“The reason why India is doing well is they made a conscientious effort to improve their domestic wickets. Those days the Indian batsmen never played the short ball well, but today players like Kohli and Sharma and all are massacring the short bowling.

“We are preparing low slow wickets which the coaches want. Unless Sri Lanka Cricket whoever comes into power is able to take strong decisions we are not going to go and improve.”

De Mel expressed surprise that Sri Lanka had not requested for a practice game ahead of the three-Test series against South Africa starting later this month.

“The Lankan team is leaving for South Africa from Australia today or tomorrow and they are going to be there for seven days prior to the first Test match but they are not playing a single practice game. I can’t understand the team management’s thinking. When England comes to Sri Lanka they want about 2-3 warm-up matches. South Africa is about 6000 feet above sea level and the air is thin and breathing is different. With less oxygen you’ve got to get used to those conditions and bowl. Sadly there is nothing we could do. When we found out we tried to make a change but Cricket South Africa said that we hadn’t requested for any matches and they cannot oblige.

“We have to prepare and plan well, those are things that we are not doing. When you don’t follow these procedures after a while the results start to show up. We have no plan to improve the cricket. We are looking at short term winning in Sri Lanka. We had spinners like Rangana Herath and Akila Dananjaya but those options are also reduced now.”

De Mel was highly critical of giving the head coach wide ranging powers which made the national selectors helpless when the team was on tour.

“The batting order is not in our hands it is done by the coach. Kusal Mendis who was batting at 4 was demoted to 5 in the second innings of the second Test and they brought Niroshan Dickwella who was batting at 7 to 4. My thinking is certain players the coach is protecting moving them up and down the order. Everybody must be treated equally. We must have a regular set of batsmen for 3, 4 and 5,” said De Mel.

“What a big problem we had with the team management to get Lahiru Thirimanne included in the squad. We insisted on sending Thirimanne although they didn’t want him. He is the only guy who batted in Australia the longest. Every game he batted 2-3 hours that is what you expect from your opening batsman. Actually Thirimanne is not an opener he is a batsman who should bat at 3.

“We had quite a difficult task in trying to get thing sorted out because we were not given the chance to send a selector on tour because all that was done by the coach. To get Kusal Perera to bat at 5 there was resistance. There are a lot of problems in our team selections. Although we select and send 17 players the final 11 according to the letter given by SLC is decided by the coach.

“Previously the coach had no powers to select teams because according to the SLC constitution the manager and the captain are the ones who can pick the side. They have given the coach all the powers. He is paid a fantastic amount and if he is selecting the players, the manager and the support staff coaches and still losing matches something has to be done seriously. There should be a performance clause in the contract. You cannot get paid for whatever the performance is. It is a terrible situation,” De Mel said.

The Warne-Muralitharan trophy which Sri Lanka won so convincingly by whitewashing Steve Smith’s Australians 3-0 in 2016 was handed back to Australia with hardly a fight when they lost the two-match Test series 2-0 in Australia. The trophy named after two of the greatest spinners in the game is a symbol of supremacy between the two teams and has been contested for since 2007-08 with Australia being the holders by winning four of the five series it has been played for so far.

That a near half-strength Australian side sans Steve Smith and David Warner (both serving bans) and Josh Hazlewood (injured) was able to steam-roll Sri Lanka in both Tests well inside four days goes to show the disparity between the two sides.

Lahiru Thirimanne batted the longest for Sri Lanka in the series facing 314 balls.

At the commencement of the series Sri Lanka fancied their chances against a depleted Australian side led by wicket-keeper/batsman Tim Paine, but once again it was their brittle batting that contributed largely to the loss with only two batsmen making fifties while in contrast four Australians completed hundreds.

Travis Head, Joe Burns, Usman Khawaja and Kurtis Patterson, the four centurions in the Canberra Test and the series would certainly have not done any harm to their careers by including their names in the shortlist for Australia’s Ashes series in England which follows after the World Cup. The Lankan Test series was their final chance to push themselves for places and they did not miss out.

The incompetence of the Lankan batsmen to handle short-pitched bowling was a major factor and the absence of their most experienced Test batsman Angelo Mathews (injured) only compounded their misery. Sri Lanka were completely outplayed at the Gabba on Australia’s bounciest pitch with the pink ball proving unplayable under lights.

All thoughts of trying to wear down the Australian bowlers like the Indian batsmen (especially Cheteswar Pujara) had done simply flew out of the window with none of the top or middle order batsmen having the will power and the skill to survive in the middle against Pat Cummins and Jhye Richardson in the first Test which they lost inside three days by an innings and 40 runs.

The longest period any Lankan batsman occupied the crease in the entire series in one innings was for 105 balls by Lahiru Thirimanne while scoring 41 in the second Test.

Canberra’s first-ever Test was reduced into a four-day affair when Sri Lanka suffered another heavy thrashing by 366 runs. On this occasion Australia’s misfiring spearhead Mitchell Starc who had struggled against India and at the Gabba came roaring back into form with a match bag of ten wickets to have the Lankan batters ducking and weaving at balls delivered at 150plus on a track that was a far cry from what they experienced at Brisbane.

Two of the batsmen opener Dimuth Karunaratne and Kusal Perera were both hit on their helmets thus displaying their incompetence towards handling the short-pitched ball. Perera in fact ducked at a ball that hardly rose above stump height and had to retire hurt.

At the end of the series Sri Lanka were still left with question marks on who their permanent no. 3 should be. Captain Dinesh Chandimal who tried to fill the role was exposed very badly making only 24 runs in four innings with a top score of 15. He is not a no. 3 batter as his career record reveals. Chandimal has scored the majority of his Test runs batting at either no. 5 or 6 where he has scored nine of his 11 Test centuries. It is foolhardy to ask Chandimal to bat at three even though he is keen to lead from the front.

Sri Lanka has been struggling for the past four years to fill the massive void created by the retirement of Kumar Sangakkara at no. 3 and at the moment they don’t seem to have a batsman suitable enough to seal that crucial position. This has exposed the middle order to the opening bowlers and as a result Sri Lanka have been finding it hard to come up with totals that could give their bowlers an opportunity to bowl out the opposition.

The four Australian century-makers in the series all from the Canberra Test (from left): Travis Head, Kurtis Patterson, Joe Burns and Usman Khawaja.

Suranga Lakmal was Sri Lanka’s stand out bowler in the first Test, but his absence in the second (stiff back) coupled with injuries to Lahiru Kumara and Dushmantha Chameera – all three of whom figured at the Gabba left Sri Lanka woefully short of an experienced fast bowling attack for Canberra. In the circumstances the three seamers they fielded had the experience of only five Tests and 14 wicket between them, with uncapped Chamika Karunaratne rushed straight into the Test barely 24 hours after arriving from Colombo. The inexperience in the bowling showed when Sri Lanka managed to capture only eight Australian wickets in the entire match whilst conceding 730 runs.

Having lost 1-0 in New Zealand and 2-0 in Australia Sri Lanka face a much more sterner test when they travel to South Africa later this week for three Tests, 5 ODIs and three T20Is where they will face a pace barrage from Steyn, Rabada, Olivier and Philander, the quartet that dismantled the Pakistani batting to sweep the Test series 3-0. South Africa will certainly have that 2-0 whitewash defeat against spin on Sri Lanka’s dust bowl pitches last year at the back of their minds and will be eagerly waiting to see how the Lankan batsmen handle their bowling on the fast and bouncy pitches which they are likely to prepare for the upcoming Test series.

Paris, Monday: Neymar celebrated his 27th birthday with a glittering party in Paris on Monday evening joined by family, Paris Saint-Germain teammates and a smattering of celebrities.

DJ Bob Sinclair, Brazilian singer Wesley Safadao and world surf champion Gabriel Medina were among the 200 guests at the fashionable Pavillon Gabriel near the Champs-Elysees.

The world’s most expensive footballer, nursing a right foot injury, greeted his guests leaning on distinctive red crutches in keeping with the colour theme for the ‘Nuit Rouge (Red Night)’.

Among his club colleagues in attendance were captain Thiago Silva and goalkeeper Alphonse Areola.

Neymar, who turns 27 on Tuesday, will miss both legs of Paris Saint-Germain’s upcoming Champions League last-16 tie against Manchester United with a metatarsal injury suffered last month.

Neymar is in good company when it comes to famous footballers sharing his big day, as Cristiano Ronaldo turns 34 on Tuesday, Carlos Tevez is 35, and former Romania great Gheorghe Hagi is 54.

AFP

Following two back to back Test series defeats in New Zealand and in Australia has resulted in Dinesh Chandimal losing the captaincy to his deputy Dimuth Karunaratne and the national selectors making several sweeping changes in the 17-member squad named for the two-Test series tour to South Africa starting on February 13 at Durban.

Chairman of selectors Ashantha de Mel said that Chandimal has been rested for the South African series to enable him to regain his poor batting form.

“Chandimal’s form was down and he is also mentally down. It’s not that we dropped him but we thought of keeping him out of this series so that he can play some domestic cricket and get back to the team. In the past 10 innings he has got only one fifty. We are resting him to get him back into form,” said De Mel.

In Chandimal’s absence the captaincy has passed onto experienced opener Karunaratne who will have wicket-keeper/batsman Niroshan Dickwella as his vice-captain.

“Dickwella has potential and is future captaincy material. He captained the under 19 team in 2012 when I was chairman of selectors and he has good leadership qualities. When he was made vice-captain we found that his performance also improved immediately. He took on more responsibility and played better. He was on the verge of being dropped when we took over as selectors. They wanted Chandimal to keep wickets but we said no and retained Dickwella,” said De Mel.

Apart from Chandimal the other players axed from the squad are off-spinner Dilruwan Perera and middle-order bat Roshen Silva – both had poor tours to Australia.

“Dilruwan is having some ankle injury which he is not telling. We found that out from the selector on tour that he is taking some pain killing injections and playing. It doesn’t make sense,” said De Mel.

“Also if you look at his bowling performances outside Sri Lanka he has played about 4 Tests and taken six wickets for about 600 runs and he was not effective. He is now 36 years old, and we have to build up a couple of young spinners. We hope that Akila (Dananjaya) who had gone for testing of his bowling action will be successful. By February 15 or 16 the reports should come,” said De Mel who is keen to play him in the ODIs against South Africa ahead of the World Cup.

FOUR UNCAPPED PLAYERS

Replacing Perera is 22-year-old uncapped left-arm spinner from NCC Lasith Emuldeniya who had a fine series for Sri Lanka A against Ireland A. “He is very good. I watched him against Ireland A and he has the potential. He spins the ball and in the 21 first-class matches he has played he has taken 125 wickets. He is bowling well,” said De Mel.

Embuldeniya is one of four uncapped players in the side the others are NCC’s Angelo Perera (who last Sunday became only the second batsman in history to score twin double hundreds in a match), Chilaw Marians CC’s 26-yeaer-old one drop batsman Oshada Fernando and BRC’s 23-year-old right-arm medium-fast bowler Mohamed Shiraz.

Fernando is the leading run-getter in the Premier Tier A league this season being the only batsman to top the 1000-run mark. In 9 matches he has scored 1181 runs (avg. 73.81) with six centuries.

“Fernando will be one of three players fighting for the number six spot,” said De Mel. “What we need is the no. 6 batsman should be able to bowl about 10 overs otherwise it is very difficult to get the team balance to bowl 90 overs for the day and there will be an overload on the fast bowlers which eventually results in injuries.”

“We have left an option for six of Milinda Siriwardana, Dhananjaya de Silva or Oshada Fernando – all three can bowl. This bowler is important to keep the other bowlers fresh, otherwise they are over bowled. Especially if the spinner is not bowling well he has to bowl. Our spinners at the moment are a little inexperienced and we don’t have a Rangana Herath who has retired,” he said.

SIRIWARDANA AND KAUSHAL SILVA RECALLED

Siriwardana has been recalled to the Test side after an absence of three years. “Milinda has been very solid in the middle and every game we gave him he scored a hundred including one against Ireland A. He is in form and he can bowl.”

“We find that we need some solid middle order batsman that’s why we picked Angelo Perera. We looked through the figures every week and he has been scoring hundreds in domestic cricket. We included him in the A squad and he got a hundred in the unofficial test at Sooriyawewa against Ireland A.

He is striking the ball really well and last week he made a double hundred in each innings against SSC.”

“Shiraz has an easy nice high arm action and can seam the ball. We put him in the A team against Ireland A and he took 4 wickets and bowled really well. He is a guy that can hit the seam and move the ball around. He is an investment for the future,” said De Mel.

Kaushal Silva is the other player to be recalled after being left out of the New Zealand series. Like Angelo Perera and Oshada Fernando, Silva has been in prolific form for SSC in the Premier league having notched up two double hundreds in compiling an aggregate of 950 for an average of 79.

“We brought back Kaushal Silva because we feel that we need a standby opener. With Chandimal not there we need somebody on those bouncier pitches with a little experience in an inexperienced batting line up,” said De Mel. “We can open with either Kaushal and (Lahiru) Thirimanne or Kaushal and Dimuth in which case either Thirimanne or Dimuth can bat at no 3, Kusal Mendis at 4 and Kusal Perera at 5.”

De Mel said that Suranga Lakmal who was forced to miss the Canberra Test due to a stiff back has been included in the squad but he will be monitored carefully as they want him fit for the World Cup.

“Lakmal says he is alright but we don’t want to play him in both Tests maybe one and rest him. We are of the opinion that he is also good for the World Cup because at the top he can get wickets. The coach Hathurusingha is not keen to play him in ODIs because he thinks he doesn’t bowl well in the death overs. What we feel is that if he bowls the first overs well and can get some early wickets then you can put pressure on the opposition,” said De Mel.

“He is the only bowler whenever there is some seam assistance can get you five wickets like he showed in New Zealand and Australia. Whenever the balls seams around he can always pick up wickets. We have to manage him and not overload him too much.”

Avishka Madonza of Sri lanka Ports Authority (46.66 kmph) and Panchali Sulochana of Air Force (36.62 kmph) recorded the fastest time for the Elite Men and women at the Cycling trials held to select pools in preparation for the South Asian Games in 2019. The trials were conducted by the Sri Lanka Cycling Federation in Moratuwa on Sunday.

In the junior category men it was H.L. Hasitha Dulanjana (Stefanellil Lanka CC) who had the best time of 40.56 kms while in the women’s class it was Anne Shenali who had the Best time recording 33.50 kmph.

A total of 108 cyclists Elite Men 76, Elite Women 16 and in the junior category 13 men and three women were seen in action on this day.

An Official of the Federation said that with many major races like the Air Force cycle and other cycle races organized by Clubs affiliated to the Federation too will be considered in selecting the pools. The Federation also hopes to conduct three to four more trials before finalizing the

national pools to undergo training to with the intention of selecting Men and Women Riders to represent the country at international events inclusive of South Asian Games.

Elite Riders Men: Avishka Madonza (SLPA) 46.66 kmph, 2. Sajith Hasantha (SL

Army) 45.07 kmph, 3. H.G Dhaneshka Dilshan (Super Wheel CC) kmph, 4.

Prabath Madusanka (SL Navy) 44.77 kmph, 5. Dane Nugera (Air Force)

44.59.kmph.

Elite Riders Women: 1 .Panchali Sulochana (Air Force) 36.62 kmph, 2.

Udeshini Niranjini (SL Army) 35.93 kmph, 3. Dinesha Dilrukshi (Air Force)

35.83 kmph. 4. Madumali Fernando (Air Force) 34.97 kmph, 5. B.A. Shalika

(SL Army) 34.89 kmph.

Junior Men: 1. H.L. Asitha Dulanjana (SFLC) 40.56 kmph, 2. A.M. Tharusha

Nirmana (Silver Star CC) 40.26 kmph, 3. Keshan Maduraprabah (Two Wheeler

CC) 40. 18 kmph, 4. S.M. Krishan Sanjula (Stefanelli Lanka CC) 38.20 kmph,

5. H. Chamod Dilshan (Anuradhapura CA) 38.10 kmph.

Junior Women: 1. Anne Shenali Perera, (Flying Wheel CC) 33.50 kmph, 2.

S.M.D.J. Praveena Saparamadu (Deepthi CC) 32.78 kmph, 3. Vindya Keshani

(Silver Star CC) 27.30 kmph.