We aren’t playing well under pressure
Earlier this week, we were in with a perfect chance to square the two-Test series against England and collect valuable points in the World Test Championship. But a session full of madness where we lost six wickets for not many saw us losing the series in dramatic style. I am lost for words with our [...]
Sooriyawewa to host 142nd Battle of Blues?
The blue riband annual cricket encounter between Royal College and S. Thomas’ College is likely to maintain its continuity despite speculations of tradition big matches may have to forego the year 2021. According to reliable sources, the 142nd encounter between Royal and S. Thomas’ will take place after all, but behind closed gates at the [...]
Namal cracks the whip as heads roll at SLC
Winds of change are sweeping across Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) as Sports Minister Namal Rajapaksa has decided to crack the whip in a bid to arrest the current slide of the national team. Sri Lanka suffered two 2-0 defeats at the hands of South Africa and England which became a subject of public ridicule given [...]
A job for experts!
The Minister of Sports addressed the media midweek to announce the launch of the High Performance Plan for national athletes who are being earmarked to represent Sri Lanka at major international events, notably the Commonwealth and Asian Games in 2022 and the Olympic Games in 2024, including the Para segments. A very precise agenda indeed, [...]
Former Davis Cup star renews call for high performance programme
Former Sri Lanka Davis Cup star Sanjay Wijemanne stressed that an ongoing national squad is mandatory if the talented young guns were to blossom on the world stage. “The talent is there but to be world standard there is some distance to go. In terms of physical training it is much more professional now. You [...]
Lokuhettige faces sanctions after Tribunal finds him guilty
Former Sri Lanka cricketer Dilhara Lokuhettige faces sanctions after an ICC-appointed Anti-Corruption Tribunal found him guilty of three offences under the ICC Anti-Corruption Code. However, the Tribunal gave a divided opinion on the question of the ICC’s jurisdiction over a matter of domestic relevance. While Chairman of the Tribunal Michael J Beloff QC and Justice [...]
Desperate Journey?
This phrase has been heard over and over in recent times with mass migration of people crossing continents on foot for better life. Survival instinct is a strong motivator in man. Right now, tennis and sport on the whole, are under the threat of the virus striving for survival. It is forcing professional sportsmen into [...]
Disappointment over omission of Commando Super Cross
Sri Lanka Automobile Sports (SLAS) has been compelled to omit the Commando Super Cross from its event calendar for 2021, as the organisers of the annual motorsport event decided to relinquish its commitments this year. Inaugurated in 2016, the Commando Regiment of Sri Lanka Army conducted it jointly with the Sri Lanka Association of Racing [...]
‘Kimbula Race’ a cycling event with a difference during pandemic
Flagging off as a fun idea, the inaugural ‘Kimbula Race’, inspired by the fact that the race is held in Kumbulawala (Crocodile Swamp), was held on Thursday, where competitors completed a distance of 50 kilometres through a course designed for five laps. The race began shortly after dawn, around 6.15am and ended before the cutoff [...]
Motorsports calendar to flag off with Southern Eliyakanda Hill Climb on February 27
Sri Lanka Automobile Sports (SLAS), the governing body for motorsports in the country, released its annual calendar for 2021. The list includes 20 events organised and conducted by affiliated clubs of SLAS, with seven Super Cross, six Road Races, four Rallies, two Hill Climbs and a Rally Cross. Out of the 20 events, five are [...]
SLC rejects religious based discrimination
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) yesterday expressed its extreme disappointment at the baseless allegation leveled against certain Sri Lanka national players, coaches, selectors and officials by certain quarters with a vested interest, alleging that the present administrators are working towards promoting an agenda of a certain religious group — ‘Born Again’. SLC denies these as ‘false [...]
Mr. Reliable
Lasith Embuldeniya was not that star cricketer when he played for Royal College, but whenever he took the responsibility to deliver his left-arm spinners, the now 24 year-old has never failed to impress. His fortunes and fate would have taken a different path had he opted to pursue his craving for Software Engineering and Mathematics. [...]
Sri Lankans complete skeet event positively
Top three clay target shooters of NSSF Skeet Open 2021 Championship Prasad Madushanka, Sandakelum Ranasinghe and Shankar Dharmaratne, who qualified to represent Sri Lanka at the inaugural Online Asian Shooting Championship, ended the two-day competition at the Payagala Shotgun Range yesterday, optimistically though the final standings are yet to be released. The three skeet shooters [...]
A memoir of a Sri Lankan hockey legend
Dennis as he is fondly called and known in hockey circles, is no ordinary sportsman. One dedicated to the game with a sense of perfectionism. Dennis who excelled with the stick by serving his country, captaining his college and representing clubs, did also blow the whistle, coached with passion, administered and promoted the game and [...]
Nethmi aims global glory
Mayurapada National School, Mawanella schoolgirl, 12-year-old Nethmini Chamathya Katupitiya has dreams of representing the country at the Olympics in the sport of Muay Thai after winning a gold medal in the Max Fit event at the World Youth Festival 2020. Muay Thai or ‘Thai boxing’ has received provisional recognition as an Olympic sport by the [...]
Chess Champs Academy emerge winners
Chess Champs Academy led by Thilini Koswatte won the maiden CFSL Online Women’s Rapid Team Chess Cup 2021 conducted by the Chess Federation of Sri Lanka (CFSL) convincingly. At the grand finals, which was held in double rounds giving each player a black and a white, Chess Champs scored 3 match points where their rivals [...]
Trinitian Rahul Danaraj wins Most Popular School Rugby Player award
Standing well over six feet plus Trinity College lock forward of the 2019/2020 outfit, Rahul Danaraj, was voted as the Most Popular School Rugby Player for 2020 which was organised by Empire Clothing Club and D-Blaq. Out of the 20 selected players of the 2020 school rugby season, 10 were shortlisted for the final round [...]
Chathurya bags a deserving triple crown
The Nilaweera brothers — Chathurya and Vichinthya — Tehan Wijemanne, Luca Knese, Savini Jayasuriya and Ruvi Lewkebandara shared honours as winners of the Junior National Tennis Championship, concluded at the Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA) courts in Colombo. Chathurya Nilaweera became the cynosure of the concluded tournament that ran for almost three weeks, after managing [...]
Kaviska wins CFSL Online Youth Rapid Chess
Kavishka Gimhan Laksiri won the Under-14 category of the Chess Federation of Sri Lanka (CFSL) Online Youth Rapid Chess Championship 2021 convincingly by scoring a total 8.5 points out of possible 9 games. He scored 8 out of 8 points in the first eight rounds by scoring wins against Pansilu Karunarathne, Senith Gunarathne, Rashmitha Mettanmanda, [...]
Musaeus conducts ‘Drive Through’ Prize Giving
The annual Prize Giving of Musaeus College was held on January 20 at the school premises under a new concept. The Prize Giving was held as a ‘drive through’ event, due to the ongoing pandemic situation and health restrictions issued by the government and health authorities. The first ever ‘drive through’ awards ceremony held at [...]