Lankan experience the Aussie way

With cricket fever hitting the world, due to the World Cup which is currently being held in the Caribbean, it seems to have spread to a group of youngsters from Australia as well.

A group of 11 boys, between the ages of 13 to 15 years from Trinity Grammar School, Sydney along with a pair of siblings from the Charlton Christian College, New Castle, make up the Sydney Scorches cricket team.

The tour to Sri Lanka has been organised by Kuma Athulathmudali in Australia, in partnership with Nature Odyssey. The latter has been handling the ground arrangements for the group. This is the fourth time such a group has toured Sri Lanka to play cricket, organised by Athulathmudali. The matches were played between schools and clubs in the island. The team members are as follows: Steven Edwards, Alex Galea, Kharnan Ketharanathan, Brennava Ketharanathan, Declan Long, Michael Stead, Jordan Widjaya, Nick Malyon, Chris Woodroof, Andrew Watts, Lachlan Starkey, Adam Bannon and Hayley Bannon.

The matches which have been played so far were on April 7, 8, 9, and 11 at the P. Sara Stadium, the Moratuwa Stadium, the SSC and at Asgiriya Stadium, Kandy. The teams the Sydney Scorches faced respectively were, the Sri Lanka Cavaliers, the Combined XI the SSC Junior Team and Trinity College, Kandy.

Today, April 15, they will be playing at the BOI Grounds, Katunayake and will be facing Maris Stella College, Negombo.

Speaking to Ashley Lucas, the team’s coach, he said this was the third time he has accompanied the group. In response to why Australians love playing cricket here, he said, “the atmosphere of a tropical island together with interesting and different culture, the friendly people and of course the great food!” He also went on to say, “The Sri Lankan boys play with great enthusiasm, display fantastic skill and most importantly great sportsmanship.”

It seems in Australia these boys play under very different conditions, “with temperatures as low as 18 – 20 decrees and little or no humidity,” therefore, adding that “playing in Sri Lanka with its high temperatures and very high humidity is a real challenge,” for these youngsters and he also said that it is a, “good test of fitness.”

With regard to the current situation in the country, the coach along with some of the parents and supporters said that they feel safe to travel to the country. And that the presence of the military in the city of Colombo, along with the many checkpoints are reassuring, because they feel the security is good in the commercial capital.

With regard to why these kids decided to come to Sri Lanka he said, “The great memories and stories which previous teams to tour Sri Lanka took back with them,” had played an important roll, adding that when sharing their experiences with their friends, most members of the group decided to travel to Sri Lanka.

Mr. Lucas went on to sum up the tour thus, “Overall the wonderful Sri Lankan hospitality and great cricket is an unforgettable experience for any Australian cricketer.”