Cricket was the winner

Warden Neville de Alwis at the conclusion of the Ananda-S.Thomas' Inter-School knock-out Coca-Cola Tournament final...

By Bernie Wijesekera

The Coca-Cola sponsored schools limited-over final between Ananda and S.Thomas' Mt. Lavinia was undoutedly the best final seen since the inception of this popular tournament - the grand finale to the inter-school cricket season.

The Thomians edged out Ananda in a nail-biting finish, to win by one run, at the SSC grounds last weekend.

It was closely contested, where no quarter was given and none asked for by either team. But sporstmanship and camaraderie prevailed to the end and the spectators were afforded a spine-chilling finish. The outcome was secondary in this healthy contest.

Since the start of this tournament, it had turned out to be the nursery for developing the skills further of talented future young prospects who have done proud for the country in the Tests and limited-overs game.

Players like Bandula Warnapura, Duleep Mendis, Ravi Sathasivam,Sudath Pasqual 'Lord' Sid Wettimuny, Roy Dias, Wesleyite Navin de Silva, Anura Ranasinghe, Premlal Fernando, Leslie Narangoda, Ranjan Madugalle, Dushan Soza, Jayantha Seneviratne, Trinity's Denham Madena, Ajith de Silva and Mahinda's Dileepa Wickremasinghe, Jagath Fernando, and many others excelled in this tournament for their respective schools.

In recent times Arjuna Ranatunga, Roshan Mahanama, Aravinda de Silva, Asanka Gurusinghe, Sanath Jayasuriya, Romesh Kaluwitharana, Mahela Jayawardena, Avishka Gunwardena, Russel Arnold, Asela Jayasinghe and others have revelled for their schools and their clubs concerned.

This scribe was fortunate to watch some of these players in action at school, clubs and in the international scene at home and abroad.

Ana Punchihewa, the Managing Director of Pure Beverages, who was the chief guest at the final, paid a glowing tribute for the organisers - the Sri Lanka Schools' Cricket Association - for the smooth running of the tournament without hindrance headed by Warden Neville de Alwis.

It was President De Alwis' prudent planning and a set of competent personnel, who worked ungrudgingly, with mass participation drawn from the outstation that made a big impact to harness hidden talent, he added.

He congratulated the winners S.Thomas' and runners-up Ananda for their excellent performances on and off the field. In the end the spirit of the game prevailed, he said.

Warden Neville de Alwis, of S.Thomas', the President of the SLSCA, who spoke earlier thanked the sponsors Coca-Cola for its continuous support to uplift the sport - especially among the outstation schools. This partnership is going from strength to strength for further development he added.

Without sponsorship, it was impossible for the SLSCA to make further inroads in this popular sport where many schools in the outstations could come on par with their counterparts in the metropolis.

I am no cricketer, but I love this character building sport he added. He further stated that he will be retiring as Warden of S.Thomas' in June. I am happy that the Thomians won this prestigious tournament on the post, before I could sign off he concluded.

The Warden, congratulated Ananda College for their terrific performance, that brought forth an exciting finish.

You need two hands to clap and in the end it was 'Cricket the Winner' not S.Thomas' the amiable president of the SLSCA concluded.

The cricket coach of Ananda, Anura Polonowita, told The Sunday Times, that it has a pity that they couldn't win after stretching'em to the end. One must learn to take defeat in life. This will be a good lesson for them for their future betterment. Both teams played well and didn't deserve to lose. But in the end the spirit of the game prevailed, he added.

The coach of S.Thomas' - talented young allrounder, Jerome Jayaratne commended his team for their gritty performance. It was a fine team effort by them capably handled by Upeka Fernando, who led from the front in the entire tournament. In the end the Thomain grit prevailed he added.

Jayaratne, had a word of praise for the Anandians, who fought a relentless battle to make this final one to be remembered for a long time.

Golfers given formula for perfect swing

By Steve Connor and Stephen McGinty

A mathematician claims to have solved one of the most elusive problems in golf: the formula for the perfect swing. Using computers, a revolutionary analysis has defined the precise proportions of the ideal stroke in a dozen lines of dense, differential equations.

The calculation of the forces involved is being used by golf instructors who claim it has produced significant improvements in the performance of all golfers.

Everybody dreams of perfecting his or her swing to hit a ball hard and straight but previously there had been little serious advice from the rarefied world of mathematical physics. Now the mechanics of how a golfer should swing a club have been encapsulated in a set of equations and built into a computer program by Professor Alan Turner, head of the Thermo-Fluid Mechanics Research Centre at Sussex University and Dr. Nick Hills, a mathematician.

They studied how some of the world's greatest golfers swung their clubs by analysing photographs of them in action and plotting the course of each club as it hit the ball.

By adapting Newton's second law of motion, which describes how forces on an object of a given mass cause it to accelerate, the scientists developed the set of equations to describe a perfect swing.

Turner, a keen golfer, said the analysis was complicated because it described the different movements of the shoulders, arms and club as they are moved through the various stages of a swing.

"We have shown how they are interlinked and how they are all needed for a well-timed swing. There are some golfers who believe that such analysis leads to paralysis but we think a better understanding can improve performance," he said.

David Blair, a professional instructor at Turner's local golf club at Pease Pottage in West Sussex, has adapted the findings to improve the handicap of his students. ''I have one girl who managed a handicap of 15 after six months' training, whereas the average person would have a handicap closer to 40 after the same period," Blair said.

"Golf instruction has usually centred on correcting a person's natural swing while this is about building up a perfect swing based on the science. It's actually quite a simple concept."

Turner said that the secret of the technique is to point the chin a little way behind the ball before lifting the club. Then the golfer should try to hit the ball keeping both elbows near to each other and the arms as close to the body as possible.

Turner has prepared a scientific paper on his study which will be published at the World Scientific Congress on Golf at St. Andrews University next July. Delegates are expected to put some of their theory into practice at the nearby Royal and Ancient Golf Club, one of the sponsors of the conference. Other themes of the congress include improving mental conditioning through psychological research, analysing the aerodynamics of ball flight and learning how to cope with the ravages of old age on the handicap.

The all-important moment for the perfect swing is the half a thousandth of second when the golf club is in contact with the ball during which time it moves the ball through three-quarters of an inch. Kevin Slater, a company director and member of Pease Pottage golf club, said the analysis has transformed his game. "At the beginning of the lessons my game was disintegrating, my swing was out of plane and I was losing distance on each shot. My swing is now back on the plane, I'm hitting the ball with the centre of the club and I'm striking with a whole new confidence,'' he said.

Turner said that his calculations could not have been done without analysing the swings of top players such as Ben Hogan, the veteran American golfer who died in July aged 84, and Peter Alliss, the BBC commentator, who played in eight Ryder Cup competitions.

Alliss, however, remains sceptical about whether such a surgical dissection of the game will benefit professional players. ''In the game of golf you cannot eliminate the human element. That is the fascination. No amount of hypnotism or mathematics can eliminate the fear players have of failing,'' he said.

- Courtesy The Sunday Times

Proteas cricket more English than English

By Bob Simpson

South Africa must unshackle the chains of English negativity if they are to produce their full potential. And I am not just talking about current coach, Bob Woolmer, but the hundreds of professional English county cricketers who have harvested the riches of winter coaching in South Africa.

Since cricket was first introduced in South Africa, the main influence has been England. This was understandable in the early years as English settlers brought the game with them. It was also convenient for the English professional cricketers who were able to gain work coaching during the English winter and cricket's off season. As a result South African cricket has virtually been shaped from the cradle to the Test arena by the English way.

When I toured South Africa as a player many years ago, I had my reservations as to why in conditions so unfamiliar to England they were reliant on English coaches.

A two-year stint coaching at Leicester opened my eyes to: (a) How many English coaches were spending their off season in South Africa and (b) the quality of many of the coaches.

While I was aware that many good county cricketers were going to South Africa, the number of second XI players who would never go any higher were making a comfortable living there. This worried me greatly because many of the Leicestershire cricketers who were coaching there, in my view, didn't have the knowledge or experience to be good for South African cricket. It may have been acceptable some years ago when England were strong and wiser, but it seems strange that the type of players who have led England into decline should be used to foster and develop cricket in another country.

In the '60s when South Africa were at their strongest they had great players like Peter and Graeme Pollock, Colin Bland, Barry Richards and Mike Proctor who were prepared to do it their way. As a result they were, for the first time, developing their own style and playing the South African way. More the pity then that due to their government's policy they were banned from international cricket and, without the stimulus and competition, their cricketing style drifted back into old ways and habits.

It shouldn't be forgotten also that during their time in the cricketing wilderness the English pros continued and probably increased their winter sojourns to South Africa. They were welcomed with open arms and much gratitude and indeed if possible became even more influential and respected.

While rebel tours were organised and were helpful, visiting teams reported that South African cricket was becoming even more English than the English. Little wonder then when they re-emerged from their punishment they lacked the flair of the '60s and the imagination that made it possible.

Make no mistake, South Africa have performed extraordinarily well since their return, but their conservative style of cricket hasn't allowed them to go the full journey.

It has always seemed odd to me that South Africa, one of the fiercest and proudest opponents, hadn't identified their own style.

Every other Test country, with perhaps the exception of New Zealand and Zimbabwe, have a characteristic style which exemplifies the spirit of their country and people.

It is not for me to say what the South African style should be except to characterise a few obvious comparisons.

It has been mooted that billions of years ago the Australian land mass split and floated away from the African continent. Australian visitors to South Africa cannot help but notice the incredible similarity that can be seen between our countries. This even goes down to the weather and cricket facilities, with the pitches being closer to Australia than any others in the world.

The personality of the cricketers is also very similar. Determined, hard-nosed, unrelenting, aggressive and single-minded, and dare I say, they never shrink from a hard battle or a sledging match.

Yet, with all these similarities, South Africa, to their disadvantage, have chosen to follow the English path rather than one more suited to their nature and personality. The areas where I think this influence is most obvious is their negative cricket attitude either with the bat or ball.

Their bowling is generally based on fast to fast medium bowlers operating to a line outside off stump and short of a length. Containment is the name of the game and they do it well. Unfortunately, while it can be reasonably successful it lacks the attacking flair necessary to bring consistent victories.

There was much conjecture in the final Test against Australia that they were unlucky as they beat the outside edge of the batsmen consistently. Personally I thought this was more a product of their short of a length tactic, as when the ball did seam, by the time it reached the batsman it had done too much and missed the edge. If it had been further up more edges would have been hit.

In addition, they also follow the English slips cordon style where the wicket-keeper and slips stand far too deep. To me this is too negative as it is always better to drop a catch than not get to it.

South Africa paid the supreme price for this in the Adelaide Test when catches, including those from Mark Taylor and Mark Waugh, fell just short of the deep slip fielders.

South African batting also seems too negative and lacking in imagination. They seldom knock the ball around and limit their scoring opportunities by not seeing or seeking the broader picture. This was noticeable against Shane Warne when they seemed to have just two things in the planning computer, a forward thrust or a heave somewhere on the onside.

Warne is the best spin bowler I have ever seen, but he must not be played with a mindset based on a forward prod or a pre-determined hoist to the on. He does bowl bad balls, not many, but too often South Africa's negative attitude hasn't left them to take advantage of them.

Reverse sweeping also to me signals the English influence. It has also amazed me that South Africa haven't produced good leg spinners. It is an ideal country to bowl over the wrist spinners, for the pitches give both bounce and spin.

Unfortunately, South Africa have decided or, perhaps, been guided into the more English style off spinners. Little wonder then that traditionally South African batsmen have had problems with leg spinners.

South Africa are moving into a new horizon with their cricket and more and more blacks are going to be in the national team: African tribes, Cape Coloured (mixed races) and Indians, all with their own and varied natural heritage.

I only hope their natural instincts are not inhibited by too much left elbow up and all that old chap!

- Courtesey The Sportstar

An allegation: Men who run Lord's are duffers

By Ted Corbett

Day 64. As you may have heard, there is a bit of a to-do at the offices of the England Cricket Board. A receptionist gets pregnant and the resulting exchange of views with the bosses there causes her to leave and take her case to an industrial tribunal.

She makes claims that the Board offer to pay for an abortion, that a great many sexist remarks are aired and that the atmosphere in the glass house at one corner of Lord's is very old-fashioned indeed. The Board, I cannot help noticing, decide not to defend the action on the pragmatic grounds that they don't want to get into an almighty argument; but those political persons cannot help making capital out of the row while noting that only recently MCC's members turn down an attempt to admit women to their ranks. (For those interested in accuracy, a rare commodity in the reporting and expanding of this story, the members voted for women to be admitted but there was not a two-thirds majority. Same as refusing to allow women into the pavilion, I suppose.)

From this point all sorts of allegations are thrown around, including the strong hint that the men who run "Lord's" are a lot of "old duffers." Tim Lamb, the Chief Executive of the ECB, gives a long interview, explaining it is all a lot of rubbish, the Board is very even-handed in its dealing with women and, some of his best friends etc. etc., his girls play cricket, he attends women's matches and really what is all the fuss about. Let me just make two points. Most of the people in cricket don't know anything about women's equality. They learn their social principles in the dormitories of public school, or the county dressing rooms, or, worst of all, in the corridors of power at Lord's. But then you can make the same point about the Army, the Police and the House of Commons where most of the trouble overheats. Professional cricket has a more deep-rooted problem. It is the inability of the man in the street, the reporter outside cricket and almost every public figure who litters his speech with cliches about cricket and fair play to tell the difference between MCC, ECB, TCCB and what they love to call "Lord's." I read a piece in an English newspaper recently which says that "the new English Cricket Board and Lord's have to get their act together."

Inasmuch as there is an organisation called "Lord's." Lamb said in his interview that his Board recently appointed a new head of corporate affairs to sort out their image. I don't envy him his task.

Day 65. You can keep the Wisden dinner, the Cricket Writers' Club dinner and all those peanuts and cocktails start of the season affairs to which I already have a letter rack full of invitations. I like Tony Cozier's party around about the Barbados Test every year; and I am not just writing this because I happen to know he and his lawyer go through this diary every week hoping that I will give them the opportunity to sue. It takes place at Consett Bay and it is so well hidden that, although I go many times in the last ten years, I still get lost, even though my devotion to Ms. Joanne King is as much to do with her ability to read a map as her brilliant cooking, her constant smile and her barbed wit. Once there - and I am one day hoping to beat two hours for the 20-mile journey from Bridgetown - the day passes in a haze created by the good talk and the flow of food and drink. Actually, talk is not quite right. When Bajans argue voices are raised and all sorts of pointed remarks are made about the personality of the other debaters. But no-one seems to take any offence. I am sad that Philo Wallace, a giant of a man selected for the Test side when both openers are dropped at the same time - one of the strangest of all decisions - is not present. He enlivens the proceedings so much four years ago that whenever I see him I make straight for him. I hope he never loses his outreaching personality; but I fear he may. In recent reports I see references to "responsible batting" a "maturing man since he became captain of Barbados" and I wonder if in future our communication may not be quite as much fun.

Day 66. Well, that's relief. At last I catch up with Philo Wallace and we have a giggle about his ability to last a couple of balls - he is out first ball against England in the Sharjah tournament in December- and he trots off to field as full of good humour as ever.

Day 67. There is, of course, a large crowd of celebrities at this colourful Test although, now that the media centre is at the far side of the ground - that is away from the gorgeous old pavilion, we miss the crowded little bar at the top of the Challen or Stand where you bumped your way from one former great cricketer to another, where the view was superb and where you could always find someone to talk about the cricket, the old days or the wrongs of the modern game. But still, there are any number of the great and good around. Let's start with the two umpires Barry Dudlestone and Jack Hampshire, both heavily involved in the travel business and "Flat" Jack Simmons, here with wife and family, surprised to be Chairman of Lancashire but always ready to spin a yarn about, for instance, the speed and venom of Colin Croft, now the most affable of reporters. Here, too, are Neil Foster and David Capel of Northamptonshire, where coach Foster thinks he solves the problem of Capel's batting. Gladstone Small is visiting the island of his birth, Sir Garfield Sobers is socialising and making a speech or two, Lord MacLaurin, the Chairman of the England Cricket Board, is being gracious and a group of English cricketers wives are supporting their husbands. When Mrs. Vandana Ramprakash, a lady of Indian descent of course, is getting ready for the cricket as Mark approaches his first century after seven years of trial and error she is asked to stay in the hotel so as not to make the great underperformer more nervous, if that is possible. Like the nice man he is, Ramps phones his wife as soon as he is out. "The joy," he says, "it's the greatest I can remember." Good, Let's hope his century has a more lasting effect than that scored in similar circumstances by Graeme Hick in India some years ago.

Day 68. Pictures in the two leading English tabloid newspapers show the England captain Michael Atherton making a very rude sign to Philo Wallace as he leaves - wrongly given out, I must report - after bashing his way to 45.

Wallace is not an elegant batsman but he has a wonderful eye, the power of a jack hammer and a desire to get on with the game. He is also quick-witted enough to answer back when the England players criticised his methods and the result is an altercation.

When he is out Atherton not only makes a socially unacceptable sign but offers him advice which I will translate as "Leave quickly." No doubt Wallace hears all this sort of stuff before but, am I being old-fashioned? Or is this way for an England captain to behave. I think not. Especially when the West Indies captain has the good grace to shake the hand of Ramprakash after his century. It also comes in the same week as what even the most dedicated ancients are calling "the scandal at Lord's."

Day 69. Someone tells me that I must go up the coast for a few miles where there is what he calls "the biggest bat in the world." As a nature lover I am fascinated by this information and resolve to see this vampire as soon as I can; until I read in the local paper that it is a 20ft high stone cricket bat which marks the centre of a heritage park and which is being considered by the Guinness Book of Records as the world's biggest.

Day 70. I keep secret for several weeks now about the wedding of Patrick Eagar, often called the finest cricket photographer in the world, and Fiona Foster, the cheerful representative of Cornhill in the English Press Boxes. Patrick's wife dies in 1996 and the whole cricket community is pleased that this always enthusiastic man finds a new mate so quickly. I don't know anything else about the marriage ceremony but the wedding album must be worth seeing.

- Courtesy The Sportstar

Nelson starts cricket school at Colombo CC

By Bernie Wijesekera

Nelson Mendis, the English master and a qualified cricket coach par-excellence at Nalanda helped the school to dominate the school cricket scene from 1965 - '79.

A firm disciplinarian, with a services background, he moulded his charges not only to improve their cricketing skills, but also to play the game in the correct spirit, with a high standard of sportmanship - on and off the field.

During his tenure at Nalanda as master-in-charge cum coach in the junior level, he was able to mould champion teams in the under - 11, 13, 15, 17 and 19 groups.

In the process Nalanda was able to produce many promising youngsters, who later went on to play in the national team. Sri Lanka's first Test captain in the inaugural Test in 1982 against England, Bandula Warnapura, Lalith Kaluperuma, Jayantha Seneviratne, Anura Ranasinghe, Roshan Mahanama, Asanka Gurusinghe, wicket-keepers Gamini Wickremasinghe, Chamara Dunusinghe and Kumar Dharmasena, came under his tutelege at the embryo stage.

Besides Nalanda, he had a short stint at D. S. Senanayake College and guided players like Hashan Tillekeratne and Pubudu Dassanayake.

A storehouse of knowledge in this gentleman's sport, apparently it has eroded today in some areas due to too much professionalism. But Nelson, still believes that it isn't cricket and the spirit of the game is the thing in the end.

A product of Dharmasoka, Ambalangoda, he excelled with the willow and represented the Southern Province Combined Colleges XI. Later he turned out for the Old Sokians, Bloomfield, and Badulla CC in the Div. III tournament which teams he captained.

He also captained the State Services teams in the A, B and C divisions, while representing the Education Dept.

His first love was to promote cricket and passed the advanced Diploma Coaching Certificate Course level IV under Les Lenham of U.K.

He also passed out with distinction in many coaching courses conducted by the Cricket Board. He also followed a coaching stint under Australian coaches Jack Walsh and Julien Wiener.

While serving Singer (Sri Lanka) he helped their players to make an impact in MCA cricket.

Mendis, now retired from Singer has started a Cricket School of his own at the CCC Maitland Crescent, Colombo, for boys between eight and 18 years on a daily basis.

Fully committed to the sport, the codeword being devotion, dedication and discipline, the hallmark to success be it at the classroom, or on the field. This he could inculcate among his charges, that too with his charming ways.

He also had a coaching stint in Malaysia.

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