Trinity hold all aces; Antonians no trumps
View(s):By Aubrey Kuruppu
The 97th Trinity-St. Anthony’s Big Match, to be played on the March 8 and 9 at Katugastota, is in a sense, a mismatch. The Trinitians are the best side in Kandy and remain the team to beat. Not so with the Antonians, who have been struggling with a rather inexperienced line-up.
Trinity cricket team
So far, Trinity has two outright wins, eight first innings wins, four first innings losses and three no-decisions. Their opponents haven’t scored an outright win, won five and lost four on first innings, were involved in two no decisions but suffered bad losses to Royal and St. Peter’s. It appears that the Lions have a very solid top-order that is presently in finish fettle. The same can’t be said of the Antonians who have found runs hard to come by. Possibly a little tinkering has led to an unsettled batting order.
Dinuk Wickremanayake, the Trinity skipper, has had a superb season. A century, six fifties and a few not outs have made for a fine average. He has invariably delivered when his team needed runs. The Antonians will no doubt target him.
Rajitha Jayathunga, another centurion, also has four fifties. This has been his best season and he has proved a stumbling block for quite a few teams. The attacking Bhagya Palihawardena is the third century-maker. He has two fifties and has made several noteworthy contributions. Opener cum stumper Lakshita Dissanaike has been very consistent and his four half centuries have been impressive knocks. Ron Chandragapta, a left-hander, is a solid partner who has to be prised out. He made seventies against Mahanama and S. Thomas’.
The Trinity bowling has been given a new dimension by the efforts of left-arm spinner Lakshan Jayasinghe. He has captured around eighty wickets, with five efforts of five or more. He must be the focus of a lot of attention in the opposing camp. Though he turns the same way as Jayasinghe, the other left-armer Charith Sudaraka has bowled well in tandem with the former. Skipper Wickremanayake has picked up useful wickets with his off-spin as has newcomer Raveen Sayer, who has also contributed usefully down the order. Pacemen Amrit Sri Mahan and Subendiran have been a trifle disappointing. However, Sri Mahan, with his sharp pace and movement, can unsettle the top-order. If the Antonians can shut out danger-man Jayasinghe, they will have won half the battle.
St. Anthony’s cricket team
Antonian Skipper Sachin Bulathsinhala has performed at optimum capacity with both bat and ball. Basically an off spinner (best figures 8 for 36 against Dharmaraja), Bulathsinhala has come to the party with the bat on many occasions. A top score of 94 not out against the Peterites testifies to his grittiness and staying-power. Another gigantic all-round effort could be in the offing.
Nimesha Gunasinghe made hundreds in his first couple of games and at that stage, the sky seemed to be the limit. But apart from two fifties and a forty, he has disappointed thereafter. He bowls useful off-spin and fields very well.
Opener Viraj Deepal has a best of 57 against D.S. Senanayake plus several forties. He has a good attacking approach. Other batsmen such as Ukgalpaya, Nanayakkara and Udapola seem to be satisfied with twenties. Panditharatne has shown attacking intent but those must be allied to occupation of the crease. Burly Charles Praveen is a hard-hitting late order bat.
The Antonian pacemen have not set the pitch ablaze. The skipper is the Antonian answer to Jayasighe. He toils and spins for over after over. Perhaps greater use could be made of Wijetunga’s leg breaks and the left-arm spin of Mahindaratne. Dilan Bandara bowls tidy off spin.
All in all, the Antonian attack seems weaker than that of the Trintians’. If the fielding isn’t sharp, the floodgates could open. Last year Trinity triumphed in the nick of time. Realistically, the Antonians cannot hope to win. A draw could be the summit of their ambitions. This time round, for that to come about, the team as a whole will have to perform to their potential. They have a proven history to fall back on but will the Eagles dare?
Trinity (from): Dinuk Wickremanayake (Capt), Rajitha Jayathunga, Lakshita Dissanaike, Ron Chandragupta, Bhagya Palihawandena, Lakshan Jayasinghe, Amrith Sri Mohan, Madushan Subendiran, Arjuna Jayasingha, Raveen Sayer, Charith Sudaraka, Kaveen Hiniduma, Shanmuganathan Sangeeth, Pramodya Abeykoon, Pubudu Samarasinghe, Nushan Weerasinghe. Sampath Perera (Coach), Vinod Vishnuvarathan (MIC).
 Dinuk Wickremanayake Captain |
St. Anthony’s (from): Sachin Bulathsinhala (Capt), Nimesha Gunasinghe, Viraj Deepal, Bhuraneka Wijethunga, Charles Praveen, Dilan Bandara, Kanishka Ukgalpaya, Kavinda Udapola, Pavithra Nanayakkara, Mohamed Alfer, Damitra Panditharatne, Harshana Ebart, Hema Srikannan, Uditha Mahindaratne, Diluk Vitharana, Himesh Wanasinghe. Champika Siriwardena (Coach), G. Wickremanayake (MIC).
 Sachin Bulathsinhala Captain |
Follow @timesonlinelk
comments powered by Disqus