Netball for Peace

Adding sparkle to this championships conducted by the Mercantile Netball League will be the open tournament which will see Jaffna's participation in the open championships playing in the midst of the disabled soldiers.

Fifty percent of the sponsorship fees together with the monies collected in displaying banners will be presented to the disabled soldiers on a plea made by Siri Fernando the Managing Director of Masons Mixture and Tamara Dharmakeerthi Herath the President of the Mercantile Amateur Athletic Association's (Netball Section.)

At the opening ceremony of this tournament on Sunday November 15 at Police Park Bambalapitiya a player will take the oath of peace.

The team with the most creative peace symbol will be awarded a special prize by Managing Director of Masons Mixture Limited, Siri Fernando.

Masons Mixture will be sponsoring this championships for the 10th succcessive year with 37 firms in the fray in the A division, B division, C division and the Mixed division.

The tournament will be played on Sunday November 15, and on November 22 and 29 with the finals fixed for December 2 at 2 p.m.

Special awards will be made to the best male player, best defence, best centre court player and best shooter and also the Masons Netball Queen.

The firms participating and their divisions are,

A division - Hatton National Bank, Arthur Anderson Sports Club.

B division - AirLanka, Caravan Pastry & Bakery Shop, Seylan Bank C division champions being promoted. Hatton National Bank withdrew.

C division -

Group A - Phoenix Fashions A and B, CTC Eagle Insurance, Access Group, DMS Recreation Club.

Group B - LYCEUM International School PVt Ltd.,Metroof PVT Ltd, Ernst & Young, Sampath Bank, Dainichi Creations Lanka PVT Ltd A

Group C - John Keells, Reckitt & Colman, Ceylinco Group, National Development Bank. Fentons Ltd and Union Assurance.

The open tournament will see teams from Kandy, Polonnaruwa, Texwood, Army, Speedbirds participating.

This is the Pledge for peace

We who are gathered here, pledge and dedicate ourselves to the building up of peace in our country. As we all will pursue the trophies of this tournament so as to commit ourselves to deliver the greatest goal of all. PEACE. 

We will strive to bring peace into our homes, our work places and our social circles. We will endeavour to lead our efforts to spread day by day, into the wider circles of Sri Lanka. Our dream is of a United Sri Lanka where all her people irrespective of caste, creed and race could live in peace and harmony.

Peace is our goal.

Rover pinpoints ..........

Some of the things which happened there during the disastrous tour as Rover learns were

i. Three cricketers were seen enjoying a red wine and a few beers in the hotel witout attending net practices.

ii. A senior cricketer is reported to have told one of the expatriale Sri Lankan female workers of the hotel to wrap up ten face towels to be taken home.

iii. A senior cricketer and his wife were seen shopping for blankets.

iv. an administrator was seen constantly doing shopping rounds.

v. A few cricketers are reported to have visited night clubs.

Wrongly passed

Talk of the town

2nd Leg should be a thriller

By Saif Izzadeen

S. Thomas' won the first leg by three goals to one after a hectic tussle at the Royal college pool last Sunday . It was a tooth and nail battle with S. Thomas' having that extra 'zip' to win the match.

S. Thomas' led by Nawaff Mubarak had to pull out all their experience to stop a Royal team which came to the first leg firing on all cylinders to give a splendid performance. 

If Royal could repeat the same dose in the second leg to the played tomorrow it will turn out to be another thriller.

In the first game S.Thomas' three goals were scored by their skipper Nawaff Mubarak while Royal's solitary goal was scored by skipper Praneeth Seevarathnam.

Lalith new skipper

By Gamini Perera

Sri Lanka will meet Maldives at 6.30pm, while India will take on Malaysia in the opening fixture scheduled to commence at 4.00pm The executive committee of the FFSL made the decision. The 35 year old Weerasinghe is the most senior member of the national team having represented Sri Lanka since 1986.

He takes over from Sampath Perera who will skip this championship due to ill-health. Weerasinghe returned to the island a few weeks ago having had a stint with the famous Maldivian club Valencia SC

Stylish goal keeper with cat-like reflexes Lalith is a treat to watch when in full flight. He is employed at the ports authority.

The Freedom Cup has attracted four country's with Sri Lanka no doubt going out favourite in winning the trophy

Double celebrations 

Pyjama cricket: revolutionary hints

This was a master stroke and, with the new innovations introduced during the Kerry Packer world cricket circus such as using a white ball and coloured clothing for the players, limited-over cricket caught and held the imagination of the public to such an extent that the so called 'pyjama cricket' today has completely outstripped the traditional form of cricket in so far as popularity is concerned. 

Even though purists are not too happy with this development and the majority of the players themselves prefer the traditional form of cricket, no one can deny, least of all the players, that limited-over cricket has tremendous mass appeal and is here to stay. 

With the advent of limited-over cricket, several improvements have been brought about to the game itself such as an amazing improvement in the fielding standards and running between the wickets. Moreover, new technical innovations, notably the use of the third umpire, stump microphones and cameras have all contributed to ensure that cricket was moving with the times. 

While all these hosannas are being sung about the 'pyjama cricket' one cannot deny that there are also certain inherent disadvantages. 

When each side bats only once, the winning of the toss sometimes has a major bearing on the result, specially where the game is played under lights and the 'dew factor' in certain parts of the world could give one side an undue advantage. 

Would it then not be worthwhile to consider the possibility of a limited-over game of two innings of 25 overs each instead of the present one? Since the appeal of limited-over cricket is mainly because it is of a much shorter duration than the traditional game and that a result is always ensured, the basic format could still be retained by halving the number of overs to be bowled during an inning. 

This would enable a much faster scoring rate and also enable a batsman who fails in the first inning to make amends in the second innings. Each bowler would be given 5 overs and the ball used in one inning would have to be continued for the second inning, so that the spin bowlers too could make their presence felt. 

There could be a view that all 11 players will not get a chance to bat. In this proposed set up the batsmen will be there to score whereas the tail-enders who are generally bowlers would have to undertake their assignment. 

While the traditionalists would shudder even more at this revolutionary idea, it could make the limited-over game even more entertaining to the average public as it could result in even faster scoring and consequently more excitement. 

Learn, without crying over mistakes 

Year 1998 has not been as successful as 1996 or 1997 for our one day cricket. We have lost more matches in 1998, and if this trend of losing continues we would relinquish one of cricket's most coveted prizes viz the World Champs in one day cricket. At Sharjah it was a safe assumption that we would be in the finals with India. Zimbabwe which was earlier a part of South Africa known as Rhodesia defeated us twice, underlying the losing trend. 

There are many reasons for this debacle. Our fielding has never descended to these depths. In each game we dropped catches which would normally have been considered easy. The lethargy on the field was very evident. One wonders why the captain bowled Dharmasena in the final overs of our first game in Sharjah against India as he had been trashed by Azhar, when Chaminda Vaas who had bowled very well was forgotten!!!

At least the Managers could have sent a message to the Captain from the dressing room as they are in a position to see things differently. 

The batting was also on the decline. It is a fact in cricket that players lose form. Yet the batsmen could have shown far more application and cut out rash shots. Our island's cricketing pride was at stake and getting out the way we did was suicidal. 

Motivation is a vital factor in any sport and more so in cricket. It is for the leadership to motivate the team. Our side had lost the will to win and were like a rudderless-ship aimlessly wandering. The fighting qualities we are renowned for had deserted us. 

It is important to go back a few years prior to winning the World Cup in 1996. We had Dave Whatmore and Duleep Mendis basically in charge of the team and they would have stressed on physical fitness, fielding, tactical play and motivation because this was abundantly clear in the manner in which we performed. We won the Sharjah trophy defeating Pakistan and performed very well under difficult circumstances in Australia where the character of our team were moulded into a fighting unit. 

I believe we really came of age in Australia as a cricketing nation under the guidance of Dave and Duleep. It was in Australia that we changed our approach to the one-dayers. Initially it was Kalu who blazed away in the first fifteen-over lofting over the infield and racing away from Sanath, who not to be outdone followed suit and even did better!!!

However, in Sharjah where usually the ball comes onto the bat we opened with two left handers. Avishka after a very shaky start made 50 in the first game and failed miserably thereafter. Opposite teams are quick to assess the weaknesses of batsmen. 

We have another arduous tour to Australia and thereafter the World Cup in England in May/June where the weather is more conducive to seam bowling than to batting. It is time we took stock of ourselves and revamped the top, to get more professionalism into the game, fine tune our fielding and motivating them into a winning team. 

On this tour to Sharjah we had Upul Chandana and Murali in the tour party, but neither played due to injury. Could it not have been more prudent to take two other players and give them the experience. It is very surprising that Ruwan Kalpage was not taken on this tour. He is a fine off spinner and a good batsman. What has become of Ravindra Pushpakumara. He appears to be completely ignored. We have already lost many talented players like Waruna Waragoda who according to Anura Tennekoon, the former Sri Lankan Captain, had a touch of David Gower in him. 

The selection must be free of bias or favour. The best possible must represent Sri Lanka. We have had too many instances of mediocre players being persisted with and the better players being frustrated. 

On a review it is time that Duleep Mendis is brought back to manage the team. He sought a month's leave and has not been reinstated. There is no valid reason for this. He has led Sri Lanka at Test level and has won the respect of all the players including Arjuna who learnt the art of captaincy under Duleep. They have proved to be a successful combination. With Darrel Hair breathing down Murali's neck we will need a well knit experienced fighting unit. Duleep has plenty of experience in handling this type of situation and will prove to be a tremendous asset. 

What people interviewed had to say of our players

o K.G. Neslin - Street vendor, Maradana - We would have loved to see them winning. The whole nation must be sad. But I wish that with the help of all gods they'll start winning again.

o Nilanthi Jayasinghe - Student, Dehiwala - Nobody can win all the time. We must accept defeat as well as we enjoyed our victories. All the players in the present team are very good. Take for instance the likes of Sanath Jayasuriya, Aravinda de Silva and Muttiah Muralithran. In their trade all of them are pretty good. Only that they did not click this time.

o Ranjan Paranavithane - Cricket Journalist, Colombo - It is a well known fact that cricketers reach peaks as well as low points in their careers. If we take the example of South Africa we could see this pattern clearly. During the latter part of their England tour they were really down and lost the test series and failed even to reach the finals of the One-day tournament. It is something like that what we are experiencing now. This is a minor setback. But we must not be hasty in changing players. There is no time to bring new blood to the side with just six months to go for the World Cup. We must prepare thoroughly from now onwards for the next World Cup. Physical condition as well as the Psychological condition is vital at this level.

o M.G. Lalith Thilakasiri - Lottery ticket seller, Colombo - It is queer the circumstances under which we lost. I can't remember in the near history when we lost so many matches in a row and lost so badly. We were doing so well. Just see how well we performed in England. I think genuinely a team can't turn this bad within a few days. There must be a strange reason to it. Since lately we have been hearing lots of things on betting in cricket. Anyway, I hope we would be that winning side again.

o Chandana Madanayake - Technical officer, Galle - We have to accept that we played badly. Zimbabwe is a much improved side and though we are the World Champions, we can take a leaf out of their book. Their fielding was fantastic. Our players showed somewhat of an indifferent attitude on the field. At this level, I don't think anybody can take things for granted. We have a formidable task ahead of us in defending the World Cup we won in 1996. It is good that this kind of defeat came at this moment. Now we have time to sit down and think about what happened. Remedy the problems.

o Prasantha Liyanage - Post Master, Galle - It is a clear cut factor that the level of Sri Lanka's performance has gone down. It had gone down so rapidly to the extent of losing to Zimbabwe, the youngest Test playing nation of the world. This shows us that we can't live in our own fool's paradise and take things for granted. Others are working hard and to keep pace with them we have to work even harder. Now the level is back again fallen to zero. We have to begin from the scratch again, just as we picked ourselves up before the last World Cup. There is no reason why they can't do it because Sri Lanka is blessed with some of the most talented cricketers on earth today.

o S.A. Amarasiri - Street Cleaner, Colombo - We get an immense pleasure when Sri Lanka win not only in cricket but also in other sports like athletics, football. We like to watch and listen to cricket because we are the World Champions. For us our heroes will remain the same whether they lose or win. We lost this time. But what to do ? That's the way it is. But I am sure we will win the next time. Because I know that our boys are capable of beating any of them

o Rohan Abeysirigunawardena - Mercantile Executive, Colombo - There is some talk of the disunity in the team. What I feel is, there should be unity among members of any group, if team work is to be the key to success. In team work, it is basic knowledge that there should be delegation of authority. The leader should not have excessive powers. Just as well all members must support the leader irrespective of personal differences in order to achieve the common goal. These are fundamental truths about teamwork which apply to cricket as well. When there is an effort, all links in the chain should be equally strong. Otherwise it will break from the weak point. A retirement age should be imposed for cricketers and if it is not an exceptional case the players must be replaced with young blood.

o Ayanthi Gammampila - Secretary, Colombo - It was complete turnaround from what we expected from our cricketers. I wonder where we could go from here. Arjuna, despite being the old worrior he is, can still be rated among the best batsmen we have. I think the failure lay in our batting. Aravinda seemed like he was in a world of his own. Failure of Sanath was also a big blow. Roshan was a complete disappointment considering all the noise that was made after he was dropped from the side. But all in all, we still have the ingredients for a winning formula. It is interesting to see what the Cricket Board is going to do about it.

'I am disappointed and disgusted the way the Sri Lankans played against the Zimbabweans,' said Neil Atugoda a student of a leading school in Colombo.

He added, "we were ruling the roost in one dayers since we won the World Cup in 1996, but now we have been beaten not one but twice by Zimbabweans. No doubt they batted, fielded and bowled better than us."

Tanuja Mendis a senior student in an International School said that we cried the day we lost to India. I cannot think as to why Arjuna did not call in Vaas to bowl instead of Dharmasena. "Its that one over that changed the fate of the entire tournament," she said.

She also said "I could imagine what would have happened if Vaas would have bowled instead of Dharmasena. Oh, what did we play against the Zimbabweans, don't ask me anymore its enough she opined.

Shantha a three wheeler driver, when asked for his opinion said, "I am sure our players have thrown away the Indian match, otherwise why was Vaas not asked to bowl that second before last over, which Ajit Agarkar belted for 15 runs, which made us lose the all important match."

"What's more Zimbabweans are doing very much like what we did before we became the World Champs, look at their fielding, bowling and batting, how dedicated they are, and look at our players, it seems they do not care for anything now. Has money crept into their heads he alleged?

Duleep Jayewardena an Executive in a firm said, "What a shame this is, losing not one matches but four on the trot. This is ridiculous, did they sell the match, what went wrong with our players, they never played as a team. Nothing fell in place for us."

He said, "We have lost matches before, but never disgraced like this, getting out for a paltry 98 against India. India's total of 179 was not a defendable total but yet they defended it with everything they had in their armour. Mark my word he said, if we play this way we can forget the next World Cup where we have to face India and South Africa in our group before we play the other teams."

"No dedication, application, shoddy fielding, erratic bowling by some, horrible running between the wickets by some; what else do you want me to say about the team after their dismal failure in Sharjah said M. Jiffry a businessman."

K. Gunasadsa, a vegetable vendor "anney sir, we are finished in one - dayers now, I did not even dream that Zimbabweans would ever beat us, he said.

But he said "If Aravinda had not been given out the second time he would have done something to save us, but why didn't Arjuna allow Vaas to bowl the 48th over against India he asked?"

A senior politician who did not want to be named when asked for his opinion shot back straight away that some of the players' heads are swollen, they have lost their heads and living in a dreamland of their own he said, that's enough in disgust."

K. Arumugam of Kotahena said, I am an ardent fan of Arjuna, Aravinda, Murali and Sanath unfortunately Murali could not play. But Sanath is not the same Sanath we know of. Aravinda is also finding it difficult to get back his touch. I cannot understand why Arjuna failed to make use of Vaas against India in the 48th over he asked. Something is critically wrong with our team. Unlike the West Indies our players do not have to fight for money, they have enough and are paid well, then what is wrong with them he said?"

These interviews were conducted by "Sunday Times" staff reporters Annesley Ferreira, Channaka de Silva, M. Ismeth and Callistus Davy. All those interviewed you could see by their statements that they were worried a lot with the Sri Lankans not faring well both at the Mini World Cup and the Sharjah Trophy.

All those interviewed were of different walks of life who spared their little time trying to get back home after work on Friday evening. 

Below standard

By Channaka de Silva

The National Athletic championships which was held at the same venue on the previous weekend was much more competitive as timings and standards of many events suggested. Why did this happen ? The reason is simple. With the Asian Games round the corner, no premier athlete wanted to risk injury or suffer a demoralising defeat. As the coaches would say their athletes are preparing to "peak" for the important event-The Asian Games. 

From the level of competition, from the spectator attendance and from the lukewarm interest it generated, the whole 32 million rupee exercise was futile. 

Premier sports sponsor Caltex had pumped in Rs. 1.5 million in sponsorship while the ministry met the rest of the expenses amounting to some Rs. 0.5 million. 

In addition to this, Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation spent an estimated Rs. 0.6 million on the two-day live coverage which ran to almost eight hours over the National Television Station. Caltex generously sponsored part of the coverage, but a Rupavahini spokesman disclosed that the entire cost was not covered by the sponsorship and it was carried out as a "National Service". It would be worthy to weigh the cost and the standard of the event for Rupavahini to commit themselves before they indulge in their next "National Service". 

Indian Team Manager Yadvinder Singh identified his team as a "B" team. He said the National team could not take part as it was in intense training for the Asian Games. He said scheduling of the championships was bad and it effectively terminated the chances of top athletes taking part. 

Women's 100 metre hurdles champion Sriyani Kulawansa opined that organisers should take measures to schedule the championships better next time so that all top competitors of the region will be seen in action. "The organisers should be more flexible and allow the top contenders to fit the championships into their schedules." she said. 

Was there a miscalculation in the timing ? According to Gunawardane there was no such thing. Gunawardene said- Even the schedules of World Athletic Championships in South Africa and Commonwealth Games in Malaysia recently clashed making some of the top athletes to skip either of the events. "It happens all over the world at all levels. It can't be helped. We had the Commonwealth Games, now we are going to have the Asian Games and in another few months we may have some other major competition. So, can it be helped? If we have to schedule the meet to the whims and fancies of everybody, we would not be able to have it". Gunawardene explained. "We had to somehow have it" he said. But asked whether they had to have it for the sake of having it, Gunawardene answered in the negative. He explained that the championships served the purpose of providing a high standard of competition for the athletes of the region in-between the SAF Games. 

According to Singh, regional sports super power India's all 25 to 30 top athletes are currently in training at a special camp in Jamshedpur in Bihar with the Asian Games as their aim. The last trial called the confirmation trials for the Asian Games would be held on November 15,16 and 17 in Calcutta while the prestigious Indian Open was held also in Calcutta from November 3-5 and it was also supposed to be a trial. So, it is obvious that it is an impossibility for the top athletes to fly to Colombo for the championships. "If this was held at least two weeks ago, then we could have sent a better team" Singh said. 

In the absence of the highest Indian competition, Sri Lankans made merry clinching 19 golds out of 33 in the one horse race. Indians still finished with 12 golds to prove their prowess while Pakistan managed just a measly two Golds. Nepal and Maldives, the other two countries in the competition failed to win a single medal underlining the poor standards of the region and helped to add a further low profile to the Games. 

Susanthika Jayasinghe speaking in a radio interview a few days ago said that what mattered most was not winning Golds but the standard of that medal and the timing achieved. 

Declining standards were further fuelled by the withdrawal of Bangladesh and Bhutan, especially the former, just before the meet. But as Gunawardene saw, the standards were not really that low. He cited the fact that several meet records of the two year old championships falling as an indication of a good level of competition. "Records won't fall if the standards were low" he said. 

But the actual fact was that, for the inaugural championships in India, Sri Lanka did not send a full strength team just as India did this year. 

So, both meets held so far have been lop sided contests. If the records were scrutinised, the pathetic level of the championships would be properly reflected. It is questionable whether the so called records could bring any credibility to the championships. 

The absence of Athens World championships silver medallist Susanthika Jayasinghe was another big blow to the status of the championships. 

It was just the misfortune of the championships that the region's champion sprinter was down with fever on the eve of the championships. "I had high fever which forced me to withdraw" Jayasinghe told "Sunday Times". 

Having failed to take part in both SAF meets, Jayasinghe acknowledged the fact that the championships failed to reach the standards of at least Sri Lankan Nationals where she won golds in both 100 and 200 metre sprints. She had watched the live telecast of the championships over Rupavahini. 

But she wanted the championships to continue in the future as well. "Even if the top athletes are not there, it should be held. It will be a good chance for the second string athletes of these countries who have no other good competition to pit their skills. At main events like SAF Games, athletes of that level will not have a chance" she said. 

Singh said that ninety percent of their team for the Asian Games had been already selected. He named 4X100 relay sprinters Vanitha Tripathy and Dinesh Rawath as the only members in the team to Colombo as prospects to go to Bangkok. 

But in all aspects, the organising was first class and it simply superseded the standard demanded by the meet. Everything was in perfect order and one final thing reflected the commitment of the organisers. Within minutes of the conclusion of the championships a comprehensive booklet of all results were provided to the journalists and was just one small fact which spoke about it all. 

In the competition, which was forced to be put off by one day by the heavy monsoonal rains, there were isolated sparks of brilliance. Sugath Tillekaratne who won the Caltex best performance award at the meet provided two such moments. He set two records in the 200 and 400 metre events with certainly good timings. Altogether there were 12 new records set up. 

But time is ripe for the authorities to sit back and think about the purpose of the championships and to stop a colossal wastage of money if nobody is going to take any interest. 

Tiny tots excel at tennis

By Saif Izzadeen

They were all in white playing kits and were eye catching and so was their sparkling play. If there is any doubt amongst sports fans that there isn't talent amongst these youngsters, let it rest. Talent simply abounds in them and the secret is to harness it. 

The nationals were held in the age groups of under-8,10,12,14.,16, and 18 for boys and in the girls section it was worked off in the age groups of under-10,12,14,16 and 18. 

Upsets  

There were several upsets as well. Many seeded players fell by the wayside 

The upsets which took centre stage came when the under-14 top seed Harshana Godamana lost to fourth seed Dinuka Ranaweera in the quarter finals. 

In the under-14 semifinals bottom seed Manujla Ariyasena lost to unseeded Upendra Walgampaya. 

In the under-16 category, bottom seeded Basith Kariyawasam was beaten by Roshan Pieris in the semis. In the under-18 semi finals Samitha Ranaweera and Lahiru Jayasuriya scored wins over Renouk Wijemanna and Basitha Kariyawasam who were top and bottom seeds respectively. 

In the girl's section top seed Saroja Gunatillake lost to Ishara Seneviratne in an under-16 match. A stunning upset occurred when Erangi Dias lost to Malial Solih in a first round game. 

Unique  

The tournament also saw some unique achievements. Two brothers grabbed an event each and another set of brothers shared three titles amongst them. 

The Wickremasinghe brothers - Udith and Sasith - won the under-10 and under-12 singles titles respectively while the Ranaweera brothers - Dinuka and Samitha - were in outstanding form to win the Under-14, 16 and 18 singles titles respectively. 

Foreign flavour  

There was a foreign flavour in the competition as well in the form of four players from the Maldives . They were two boys and two girls. 

This made the tourney more interesting. 

The boys from the Maldives couldn't make much of an impact. However the girls made sure that they would not go back empty handed when they won the under-16 girl's singles event whilst Zeena Abdul Rasheed became the runner-up in the under-12 event.. 

The winner was Fathimath Zeena in the under 16 category. She gave a masterly display to win the title and showed that she is made up of champion stuff. 

Fathimath Zeena speaking to The Sunday Times said: " I am on top of the world. I am happy that I was able to win this tournament and take something back to my country". 

She went onto add: "The competition was tough. It was no easy ride in the final. After a tough match, I managed to pull it off". Continuing she said: " I met Umandathi Dias in the final. She played good tennis but I played better to outsmart her". 

In conclusion she said: "It was a nice experience playing in Sri Lanka. The Tennis Association looked after us very well. I am looking forward to visit Sri Lanka next year too in order to participate in another tournament". 

The under-12 runner up from Maldives, Zeena Abdul Rasheed said: 'It was a very enjoyable tournament . Unfortunately I didn't play well in the final. Mahesha was unstoppable. She played better and deserved to win". 

She too, like Fathimath, said that she was looking forward to her next visit here. 

Local competitors (Girls)  

Other than the under-16 event, all other events came Sri Lanka's way. The under-10 title was won by Dinushka Permananda 

The Sunday Times caught up with little Dinushka Premananda at the SLTA courts. She was smartly dressed in her tennis attire. She was surprised and excited when she spoke to us. "I am very happy. I played to win. My only aim was to win the title", and went on to add, "I owe my success to my parents who are always behind me. They gave me the necessary encouragement". 

In the under-10 category final Dinushka Premananda received a walk over from Princy Paramananda. The under-12 title was won by Mahesha Seneviratne who beat Zeena Abdul Rasheed from Maldives 6-2, 6-2 in the final.Mahesha Seneviratne also won the under-14 event beating Saroja Gunatillake in the final. This match was not able to go the full distance due to the fact that Saroja Gunatillake had to give up half way. 

Speaking about the victory, Mahesha said: "I am very happy. I took part in the tournament to win something. As the tournament progressed I found that I played good tennis and I took maximum benefit out of it, which enabled me to win two titles". 

"Both the under-12 and 14 girls' singles finals were tough but I managed to win them". 

The under-18 section was won by Dinali de Silva. She scored a 6-1,6-3 win over Manisha Abeywardena in the final. 

"it is a nice feeling to win the tournament. From the first round itself I found that it was no easy ride. But I kept my cool and in the end I triumphed", said Dinali in conclusion. 

Boys' Competition  

The boys competition too saw fierce match play at every age group. 

The most exciting match in the whole boys' tournament was the under-12 final between Sasith Wickremasinghe and Nishan Rajakaruna. After a hard fought struggle, Sasith pulled off an exciting 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 win. 

The under-8 boys tournament was won by Mufaddal Hazari. Hazari scored a 7-5 win over Rahantha Ediriweera in the final. 

Mufaddal said after the match, "Victory was very sweet for me. Rahantha gave me a hectic time. I knew if I made fewer mistakes I should be able to win. I am happy that it worked off that way". 

He said in conclusion, "I must thank my parents who have always been a tower of strengh. They must share the success I have achieved." 

The under-10 title was won by Udith Wickremasinghe who scored a 9-7 win over N. Nishendran. 

"I am very happy with the victory. One of my dreams was to win this tournament .The dream has come true", Udith said with glee. 

Udith's brother Sasith Wickremasinghe won the under-12 event. He beat Nishan Rajakaruna 3-6,7-6, 6-3 in the final. The match was keenly contested. Both of them fought a bitter battle until the end with Sasith Wickremasinghe winning the contest after a cliff-hanger. 

Sasith said after the win, "I am ecstatic. It was a tough match. Although I won the title, neither of us deserved to lose". 

The under-14 and 16 events were won by Dinuka Ranaweera. He overcame Upendra Walgampaya and Roshan Pieris respectively. 

In the under-14 event, Dinuka beat Upendra 6-1, 6-2 and in the under-16 event Ranaweera beat Roshan Pieris 6-0, 6-4. 

"It was very nice to win a double. I came to the tournament without any hope of winning even one title, but a double! This is a bonus. All my thanks go out to my parents who helped me every step of the way". 

After a ding-dong battle for supremacy the under-18 event was won by Dinuka's brother Samitha. Samitha was taken to three sets by Lahiru Jayasuriya in the final before the latter won 6-4, 3-6 and 6-4. 

"After seeing my brother's success I thought I must get something to make our parents happy. Lahiru played a grand game but I think I had that little bit extra to outsmart him". 
 

It's back to the drawing board

The dominating form of Arjuna Ranatunga's Sri Lankan team has dimmed to a flicker. Five defeats on the trot was something of the distant past. Then, two defeats at the hands of the relatively new boys Zimbabwe. That and the World Cup looming ahead are both worrying factors. 

But worrying and "Crying over spilt milk" is not the cure at this time. To find the answers to come back and come back strongly is what is required. 

The failure of the batting machine is the most concerning factor. The arranging of the batting order is important for going out to the middle to score runs. I believe that Romesh Kaluwitharane and Sanath Jayasuriya must open the batting, come what may, right through till the World Cup campaign is completed. Opposition bowlers have now minimized giving these two players width to play their shots and this has definitely cramped their style. They should push and nudge as offen as possible and substitute with one's and two's, what they are losing in the form of boundaries. Opening partnerships are so valuable in any form of cricket. 

Aravinda de Silva and Arjuna Ranatunga are Sri Lanka's rocks of strength. Whichever one of them who has the opportunity, must take it upon himself as his responsibility to score a ton in every game. They have all the ability and the mental strength to do just that. Should this happen, the games lost will be very few. 

Marvan Atapattu fits the number three roll perfectly. One aspect he should give thought to is shifting to top gear after about the half way mark of an innings, to accelarate the run rate. Using his feet more to the spinners should help him do that, as often spinners operate during the middle overs. 

The batting positions six and seven in a limited - over line - up requires many skills. The situations are many that players going in those slots have to face. Roshan Mahanama and Hashan Tillekeratne are the experienced campaigners around. Of the younger crop Russel Arnold, Avishka Gunawardena, Mahela Jayawardena are of the young breed. Should it be experienced? Should it be youth? Should be a combination of the two? Those are the questions the selectors will be faced with. The decisions they take will be of vital importance for the tours ahead. 

Leg before wicket, was a form of dismissal that occurred more often than usual in Sharjah. This simply points out that the ball was hitting the leg when it was in close proximity to the stumps. 

It then indicates that there was not adequate foot movement. Using your feet does not only mean going down the track to spin bowlers, it also means moving your feet correctly into line to play the ball. 

The bright spark of the tournament was the bowling form of Chaminda Vaas. Being a thinking cricketer he has spent his recuperation time wisely and has come back better than ever. His bowling at the death was also very controlled, bowling an accurate Yorker regularly. He certainly has to be Arjuna's choice to bowl the last few overs. 

Muralitharan was missed no doubt. His presence makes the whole spin department more potent. Also, the mental block he creates in the batsman often reduces their stroke - play against the other spinners. 

The inter-club limited - over tournament will be played in December. It should be good practice for the next tour - Australia. The Aussies after three convincing wins against Pakistan will be now waiting to topple Sri Lanka. It will be a testing experience. A challenge for the Sri Lankans that can only be met with absolute commitment. Back to the Drawing Board and hard work on all three departments of the game is the need of the hour. 

Who are the World Champions in one - day cricket?

South Africa recently won the Mini World Cup and their rightful designation should be Mini World Cup Champions. 

From 1975 to 1992 during the first five World Cup Championships the West Indies were World Champions undisputed, even though India, Australia and Pakistan won the World Cup in 1983, 1987 and 1991 respectively. 

Would some statistician kindly work out the matches won and lost by Sri Lanka and South Africa and against each other to find out who are the current World Champions. 

Some of the ratings of some magazines and other organisations are lopsided and there is no indication who deserves that honour.

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