Sri Lanka Netball wants to be No.1 in Asia
Netball has been stagnating for years - File pic
The Netball Federation of Sri Lanka will implement a four-year plan to stamp their position as the number one team in Asia. Sri Lanka currently ranked third in the region and 25th in the world but the administrators want to become the best in the region by winning next year’s Asian Championships.
This was revealed at the Netball Convention held recently with the participation of all stakeholders including former national players, international coaches, international referees, district level administrators, doctors and media. The four-year plan will be implemented from January next year. According to Trixi Nanayakkara, President Sri Lanka Netball Federation, under the four-year plan association’s main target would be next year’s Asian Championships in Singapore. “The Asian Championships comes under the short term plan,” said Nanayakkara.
If Sri Lanka fails to qualify for the finals, Sri Lanka will lose the opportunity to take part in the World Netball Championships to be held in Liverpool, England in 2019.
At the last edition of the Asian Netball Championships held in Thailand, Sri Lanka lost to Malaysia and ended as the runners-up.
At the Sydney World Cup in 2016, Sri Lanka was placed 16th out of 16 countries.