Schoolgirl Queen in tennis

By Udena .R. Attygalle

Grunting serves, gasping crowds and stranded opponents. The world of women's tennis is being inundated with young power players with matchless talents. And they are not there just for show , they keep winning too !

With the colour and the freshness of the Hingis's and Kournikova's women's tennis is fast pushing the old and predictable men's game, begun by the French royals of the 11th century , into second place.

Anushka Rajiyah, triple champion at the recently concluded National tennis championships is just 16.Bright and enthusiastic Anushka seems to be in the forefront of this new trend .Winner of the mixed doubles ( together with Asiri Iddamalgoda ) and the women's doubles together with Shalini Pereira , she returned to beat Shalini in the women's singles final. It was a grand achievement for this young star , but she would concede only that " it felt very nice to have won."

With a mother greatly in love with the game and a host of relatives who had swung the racket in their day, her introduction to the game came quite early. At eight years of age. Yet "staying in the game" was totally her decision, Anushka says.

The first few years saw Anushka as an average player. "I lost a lot, " she said unabashedly. Then in the under-12 age group , she started winning . Her first encounter with Shalini in '95 ended in defeat . But the very next year she came back to beat Shalini.

A brief training stint in '96, in Florida saw the still very young Anushka coming back and beating the "older girls " as well .

The next few years were marked with more victories than defeats for Anushka.

First representing the country at the ITF tennis tournament in the under-14 age group she also represented Sri Lanka at the Federation Cup in '97.

Still a student at the Colombo International School she can train only after school .

"Combining training and study is hard but I manage, "she said. And she plays basketball (wishes she was taller) plus trying her hand at cricket once in a while. "She just can't stay in one place, "said her mother summing up her energetic daughter.

A nervous player the triple victory didn't come easy. A restless night preceded the singles final (by then she had already won the women's doubles event).

The player she feared most, Sobini, had already been eliminated from the final by Shalini . " I was more confident against Shalini because she hits the ball hard like me, but Sobini doesn't hit so hard making it more difficult," Anushka explained .

"I was worried more about the mixed doubles in the morning than the singles event in the evening, " she added.

A good game and victory in mixed doubles in the morning was a relief. A 5-hour break and she was back on the court now facing Shalini. Anushka took the first set easily 6-0 : and then a sudden bout of nervousness and she almost faltered . Fortunately she recovered to win the set 6-4 to take the match as well.

Playing against the boys in the high performance squad put together by the SLTA , just before the tournament helped no doubt.

Watch out for Tendulkar

Sanath Jayasuriya, Marvan Atapattu, Mahela Jayawardena, for Sri Lanka, Steve and Mark Waugh, Adam Gilchrist, Ricky Ponting, Darren Leahman, Micheal Bevan for Australia, Sachin Tendulkar, Saurav Gangully, Rahul Dravid, Ajay Jadeja for India will lead the batting charge in the Tri-nation tournament in progress. The player who may well leave the others glancing in admiration could be Sachin Tendulkar.

By his standards his showing in the World Cup was not great. He must have been mentally disturbed by the demise of his father during the competition. It did not help the Indian cause though Dravid and Gangully excelled with the bat. Now Tendulkar finds himself shouldering the added responsibility of captaincy. He did not really want it this time - it was thrust upon him.

Tendulkar is a dedicated cricketer. He would have applied himself to the task ahead. One of the bowlers eyeing to get some sort of revenge will be Shane Warne. Last year when the showdown began Warne drew first blodod when the master leg spinner dismissed him for four in the opening Test in Chennai. But then the twinkly-toed Tendulakar found his competitive juices stived. He began to attack with malice. He bullied the Aussies all the way with scores of 155 not out, 79 and 177. Warne suffered the worst spanking of his carreer - one for 122 and none for 147.

Tendulkar did his homework. It is said he spends an entire week at training simulating the confrontation. He gets hold of every type of leg spinner availalbe and punishes them hour after hour. Not just that, he roughs up a patch just outside leg stump and gets the spinners to land there. A determined effort to attain perfection.

If at all there is an iota of criticism that can be aimed at him it is his failing to convert the centuries he has scored in Test Cricket, into real big scores. Brian Lara took his chances and went on to break the world record. For a while he was classed a better player than Tendulkar. For consistency of performance, nonetheless, Tendulkar prevails. Where Lara flits from brilliance and extravagance to arrogance, dragged down by brutal expectation and excessive responsiblity, Tendulkar thrives on his burdens. So, this time round the dimunitive champion should be ready to piece together his game in better fashion.

"He has no equal," said the former Indian captain Mohamed Azharuddin, a player with scant cause to envy anyone. He was rated highly by Sir Donald Bradman himself as the foremost player of the age, The Don's late wife Jessie would say that nobody reminded her more of her husband than Tendulkar in action. Tendulkar was flown to Adelaide last year for Sir Donald's 90th birthday bash. At the dinner a split - screen video showed the two batsmen playing the same stroke. "They looked pretty much identical," quipped Rodney Marsh. "You could not avoid the feeling that part of Bradman was there in Tendulkar," he said. Coming from an Aussie there can be no greater tribute.

All the same, it could well be that the confines of the one-day form suits Tendulkar more than the fire - day act. Perhaps boredom sets in when urgency and creativity play second fiddle to patience and self-denial. Under those black curls, behind that boyish facial expressions, beneath that fake beard he is apparently known to wear to the movies, lurks the smirk of an intrepid adventurer.

The adventures of this man will continue to unfold during this short tour in Sri Lanka and in the years to come. Yet as he turns thirty the sky can be the only for Sachin Tendulkar. "The more I see him, the more I want to see him," in action again and again said Mohamed Azharuddin. There is no doubt that all who follow the game of cricket will agree with those sentiments.

One side or Two?

As is usually the case, the Australians started the trend and the Englishmen duly followed. As is also the case, the Australians were tremendously successful with their experiment while the Englishmen were hopelessly beaten.

With the 1999 World Cup in view the Australian selectors, in a bold and surprising move, axed skipper Taylor, Healy and Slater among others from their one day side and brought in the bits and pieces cricketers - the Lees, the Laws and the Moodys. Their results subsequent to that momentous decision have vindicated the innovative thinking of the wisemen of Australian cricket.

Where their Australian counterparts scored a bulls eye, predictably Englands selectors got it all wrong. The dashing, flair-filled Adam Hollioake (no great shakes, really, as a Test player) was to herald the 'Brave New World' success did come his way in his initial jousts in Sharjah, but English hopes came down with a thud when Hollioakes men were roundly thrashed in the one day series in the Caribbean. Hollioake, too, didn't always look the part as a player.

Australia's spectacular come-from behind triumph in the World Cup has lent credence to the view that the Test and one day sides should be different. How different should they be? That is the question. There need be no Hamletian indecision. The answer is clear-cut. To be sure, Australia's one day side is radically different from the other. The Waughs, Warne, McGrath, Ponting and Fleming appear in both forms of the game. Bevan played a few Tests but has of late been sidelined. Healy was a leading light in both teams until he was axed in favour of the top-of-the-order aggressor, Gilchrist. Moody's Test appearances have been few, while Blewett has come to be regarded as a Test player only. Surprisingly, that dashing opener Michael Slater can't find a berth in the one day team (England would gladly welcome him!).

Two other powerful one day and Test sides have faced this problem differently. Both countries have ten members of the Test team appearing in the one day team as well. South Africa was the widely touted pre-world cup favourite, with an eighty per cent success rate, while the formidable, yet slightly unpredictable Pakistanis were losing finalists. Moreover, both Australia-South Africa games in the world cup were as close as they could possibly be, with very little separating the victor from the vanquished. Although the Big Prise eluded them, both South Africa and Pakistan could claim with some justification that their national selectors were spot on.

The case of Sri Lanka is similar to that of the two countries mentioned above - Ranatunga, de Silva, Jayasuriya, Mahanama, Jayawardena, Atapattu, Kaluvitharana, Vaas, Muralitharan and Wickremasinghe represented the country in the one day games in England. That is as close as you can get to the composition of the Test team.

The words 'separate team' are a misnomer. Generally, it's a matter of changing one or two personnel. These changes are related to the specific conditions governing the one day game. To hit over the top and to make the wicket wide open spaces in the initial fifteen overs, most sides have received as a pinch hitter. That is too crude a word to use in reference to Tendulkar who does open regularly in the shorter version of the game. Astle and Johnson performed that role at the world cup with varying results for New Zealand and Zimbabwe respectively. Pat Symcox, now retired, was used at first drop by Cronje precisely for this purpose.

Containment is the name of the game in one day cricket, whereas wicket-taking is the order of the day in Tests. Accordingly, the Ealhams, the Dales, the Azhar Mahmoods, the Robin Singhs give way to the specialists when the Tests come around.

As for batting, the point must be stressed that a good Test player will always deliver in the one day matches, given a slight period of adjustment. The reverse is not necessarily true. It if were, Robin Singh for instance, would never be out of the Indian Test team.

The case of Rahul Dravid is relevant. A classical, upright player, Dravid was at one time not considered good enough for the shorter game. However brilliant Test and one day series in New Zealand changed all that. The selectors hid their pride, bit the bullet and ensconced him at number three in the Indian line up. The rest, as they say, is history.

The point I am trying (or labouring!) to make is that the two sides need not differ drastically - the successful Australian experiment notwithstanding. After all, one swallow does not make a summer.

In conclusion another factor needs mention. The composition of a side depends largely on the players available. Run of the mill players for one day crickets sake? Perish the thought!

- Aubrey Kuruppu

My son Nasser

Joe Hussain is full of smiles, as anyone would be if their son had just become captain of his country. The difference is that he is the first British Asian ever to be in a position to say 'my son, the England captain'.

He has already been stereotyped as the archetypal pushy father, and it's something he cheerfully admits to. He doesn't look much like Nasser, but the same drive shines out of him.

Joe, 59, grew up in Madras, but came to England when he was 19. He met a girl from Cornwall called Patricia, who changed her name to Shireen and became a Muslim when they married in 1963, after a nine-month romance. They moved to India because Joe had a contract to set up an electronics factory, but returned to England five years later, with the infant Nasser.

Joe set up an electronics business, which did well enough for all the children to be educated privately. Then in 1989-90 - Nasser's first winter with England - Joe bought the lease for the Ilford indoor cricket school, which he still runs.

Father and son are still very close. Before ringing his wife Karen to tell her about his new job, Nasser phoned his dad. And at Lord's, where Hussain Snr is watching nine of his charges play in the Hansford Trophy for primary schools, there are a suspicious number of Nasser Hussain benefit T-shirts running around. Sipping a pint, he is more than willing to talk about the son who has got the job 'you dream and dream about'.

How did you rate Nasser's captaincy?

The most pleasing thing was that he brought back Caddick and Tufnell.

Was he ready to be captain last year?

Yes and no, but as he'd only just established himself in the England side I wasn't too sorry that Alec Stewart got it. If it had gone to someone different this time, I think I would have felt let down. I think Nasser would have felt let down.

Does Nasser come to you for advice?

Not if things are going well, but if things are going badly, it doesn't matter where he is, he contacts me. Especially on the last tour of West Indies when he struggled, and got a few unplayable balls. Whenever he goes on a foreign tour he comes to my cricket school at least three or four times to practise. It's just a psychological thing.

Do you coach him?

Not any more. The only time I've coached him since he's been a Test cricketer was when he came back from New Zealand, and was moving about the crease a lot. I had a video and just said 'Have a look at that.'

Should he have kept up his legspin?

I regret I didn't push him more. He was very small at the age of 14, 15 and had a beautiful loop - he was one of the best legspinners of his age. Suddenly he shot up about a foot and could only bowl full-tosses. I said 'Drop it for a year and then go back to it,' but he started scoring heavily for Essex Under-19s and that was it. Nasser wishes he'd gone to someone who'd put him back on track.

What are your other children doing?

Mel [35] was a professional with Hampshire for two years but now works in the City. Abbas [33] works in Turkey for an American company, and Benu [27] is number one ballerina for the Perth Royal Ballet in Australia.

Did you teach Nasser much about his Indian heritage?

Not really, though Nasser has always said that he is very proud of having an Indian father. Though I am proud of being a Muslim, I'm not religious myself and have never imposed religion on my children. Nasser would call himself a Muslim, but I don't think he's been to a mosque in his life.

Why didn't you bring up your family in India?

My wife really enjoyed it over there because you can live like a king. She enjoyed the weather, everything. But I had spent about five years over here and when I went back to India I just couldn't settle down. Then when my kids came along, I was a bit worried about their education.

Did you play cricket yourself?

I used to play a bit for Madras in the Ranji Trophy, as a batsman. Now I just play Sunday cricket.

Did you support England or India during the World Cup?

England. I suppose at the back of my mind I was supporting India [in the Super Six], but when England got knocked out I lost interest really.

Have you encountered racism from the cricket fraternity?

Personally, no, but from what I hear at the cricket school, it is a very big issue. We need to harness the better players in the Asian and West Indian communities, who seem to get lost to cricket as they grow up. I don't know how much is down to racism and how much to a lack of support from some Asian parents, whose first preference is for their sons to be doctors, dentists or lawyers.

What did you say to Nasser when he told you he had been appointed?

'Are you sure?' I just couldn't believe it. The worst thing was that he said I couldn't tell anyone till 5 o'clock that evening.

- Courtesy Guardian

The Illangakoon strain

By Tita Nathanielsz

Lionel Illangakoon the Gampola planter was a good looking man cast in the mould of Robert Taylor the ladies of the hill region used to say and when he wore his military uniform they said he looked smashing.

Illangakoon was an excellent golfer who played with distinction in N'Eliya where he won the Club title more than a couple of times.

He was later identified for higher honours and was invited to lead the Club as Captain and then followed by being elected President. Illangakoon was a superb Clubman and it was an absolute treat to meet him at the 19th hole at the extension of which was his residence when his hospitality was quite intoxicating.

Illangakoon dropped his golfing talent with his daughter Suwanetha Selvaratnam who was the long hitting, smart chipping champion of Sri Lanka in 1977 and 1987. She was an outstanding player and still continues in style.

We see now that the pipeline of talent has firmly settled on Thuhashini the daughter who at the tender age of 12 became the champion of Sri Lanka which got into the Guinness Book of records in 1992 as the youngest in the world to win a National title. Continuing her success and brilliance she won the South Indian title, Hongkong Junior and came back to win the National title in N'Eliya in 1992. In the year 1993 she strolled into Bangladesh and strolled back with their National title. Thereafter it has been a hot pursuit of academic achievements which she has successfully captured with golf training thrown in for good measure. In 1994 she entered the Arizona State University which is a Division one School, and very quickly she was outstanding in the University Golf Team which won the Inter Collegiate Championship 3 times from the best 12 schools in the states. She was placed in the 25th position among the amateurs in U.S.A. She broke the course record with 67 playing in Ohio.

National Title

Two weeks ago she was at the Ridgeways polishing up in the preliminary rounds of the National Title event. Came the finals and you saw her in her unmatchable splendour. Absolutely precise she stole a massive march over Shayanika de Silva and caned her to a 6&5 defeat to take her 3rd National title. Shayanika is stacked with talent negligently used.

Malaysian Record

A week later with the National Title in her Gucci bag she flew to Malaysia on invitation for their National Title event. Despite a strange course she played exceptional golf to end the 3 rounds one under par but that was not adequate to match Lie Ang the local champion who finished 4 under par. However Thuhashini Selvaratnam got her name engraved and embossed with the unique distinction of breaking the course record with 66. Soon after this title event Thuhashini moved to Bungaraya to compete in the Saujana Open amateur Championship and with scores of 71, 74, 69 she snatched the title event from Mary Ang by 8 strokes.

Complete Golfer

Thuhashini Selvaratnam a quiet well balanced unassuming little lady is an absolute pleasure to watch in action. She carries a very good looking swing, plays irons comfortably and is quite sure and accurate on the greens. She is still on the threshold of greater heights as she is further groomed for posher titles while her pretty sister Manishka outside the golfing circle could be polished up for Miss Sri Lanka and then who knows Miss International. Papa Selvaratnam must be confused.

Breafly

Old Anandians win 3 -nil

Park SC were beaten by old Anandians by 3 goals to nil in their Group, a match in the Singer Inter Club championships conducted by the Sri Lanka Hockey Federation played at Matale. Navy beat Matale by a solitary goal to nil. Malwatta recieved a walk over from Ports Authority, CH&FC beat Pelawatta 3 nil and CR & FC received a walk over from Vijaya SC. Police will meet Young Stars Kandy at the Peradeniya University grounds, CH & FC will take on Army at the CCC grounds at Maitland Crescent and Galle will battle Peradeniya University at Galle, all three matches will be played on Saturday August 21.

Top commentators back

All the top names in giving ball by ball commentaries in the Tri Nation cricket series between Sri Lanka, Australia and India could be heard on the Radio Sri Lanka (SLBC) commencing Sunday August 22. The cricket commentators back in action will be Palitha Perera, Eric Gauder, Haritha Perera, Premasara Epasinghe, Upali Wijesinghe, E.S. Sureshchandra, Audrey Kuruppu, Bandula Samanwaturegama, Roshan Abeysinghe, Rohan de S. wijeyerathne and Kamal Desapriya.

Liaison Officer

Premal Fernando has been picked as Liaison Officer for the Australian team by the Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka, in the Tri-Nation Series which commences on Sunday August 22. Ranil Samarasinghe will be the Liaison Officer for thr Indian team with Harold Ranasinghe the Liaison Officer for the Sri Lanka team. Buwaneka Ranadeniya will be the Officer in Charge of the Match Referee and Umpires.

Fairbrother on Murali

Lancashire and England allrounder Neil Fairbrother who plays alongside Sri Lankan off spinner Muttaih Muralitharan has said that it has been an education being able to study him from first slip. Muralitharan playing for Lancashire captured 66 wickets in only six games and helped the county finish in the top half and avoid relegation next year. (MF)

Duckworth - Lewis comes to stay

The Duckworth - Lewis method of calculating targets in rain - affected one day Internationals will become standard practice worldwide from September. The method which was invented by frank Duckworth and Tony Lewis was first tried out by the ICC in 1997 and subsequently by the England and Wales Cricket Board before being used by other countries. (MF)

McGrath for Worcestershire

Australian fast bowler Glenn McGrath has Signed up with English Cricket county Worcestershire for two years. The Speedster will play for Worcestershire in the year 2000 and 2002. Australia are scheduled to tour England in 2001. McGrath replaces fellow Australian allrounder Tom Moody. (MF)

Taylor - Promoting Tickets for the Sydney Olympics

Former Australian Captain Mark Taylor was snapped up by the Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic games (SOCOG) to head it's Advertising Campaign to sell tickets to the games. Taylors contract with SOCOG is said to be worth at least $250,000. According to an SOCOG official the decision to use Taylor was fantastic. He has been greeted with roars of approval whenever he has appeared in public to promote the Olympic ticket selling programme. (MF)

Match referees and Neutral Umpires New appointments

Two former Pakistan Cricketers Intikhab Alam and Naushad Ali together with New Zealands Brian Hastings have been appointed as Match refrees by the ICC. Meanwhile Pakistan have named two new umpires to the ICC panel of neutral umpires. Riazuddin and Athar Zaidi replaces Javed Akhtar and M. Shah. Sri Lanka's B.C. Cooray and India's A.V. Jayaprakash are the olny other new faces in the ICC panel. (MF)

Second round in Go-Karting on Aug. 26

The second round of the Caltex All Island Go-Kart and Pro-Kart championships will be held on Thursday, August 26th ( Poya day) at the Alcatraz Car Park, Kotte. The first round which was hotly contested was a tremendous success with more competitors vying for championships honours. The championships for Go-Karts will be held in four categories, Natioinal, International, Open and Junior. Prokarting events will be held for Open and Ladies. The first round was orgainsed by the Motor Racing Association and sponsored by Lanka Lubricants Limited, displayed strict officiating by the marshalls, where 3 competitors were black flagged for dangerous driving. Entries for this event are available at the Motor Racing Association Head Office at No 93, Maya Avenue, Colombo 6 and at No. 305, Deans Road, Colombo 10.

Sumanapala elected President

E.A. Sumanapala was elected as the President of the National Chess Association of the Visually Impaired at its annual general meeting held at its Headquarters at Church Street, Colombo 2. Rohan Rajapaksa was elected as Vice President with Rienzie Benedict as its Secretary. N.G. Premaratne was elected as the Treasurer with S. Mohammed as his assistant and P. Mahanama as the Organsing Secretary.

Fighting fit in 6 months

Internationally popular Martial Arts Expert Grandmaster M. Hassen Khalid (Founder-Chief Instructor) Fei Quan Do International will launch his newest programme.

He will launch the Fei Quan Do crash program,"Learn to be fighting fit" in six months at the St. Joseph's College Sports Complex cum auditiorium by the middle of next month.

This programme will be ideal for working ladies and gents and also school children. Every Saturday the program will be held at the St. Joseph's Indoor Stadium from 10 to 11 a.m.

Followed by the session at the C.I.S International School at Rohini Road, Wellawatta on Mondays and Thurdasy from 6 pm to 7.30 p.m while aerobics will be taught for ladies, Grand Master Khalid will be personally conducting the programme and he believes that the participants should learn Fei-Quan Do self-defence and physical fitness to protect their loved ones from harm.

In addition to the fighting fit crash program, he will also be teaching the ancient therapeutic curative art of Q-Gong to cure oneself from asthma, diabetics and blood pressure.

Deteriorating standards in Division 1 cricket

By Bernie Wijesekera

The talking point among cricketing circles is the outcomes of the postponed match between CCC and Sinha S.C at Maitland Crescent.

It was an orgy of run getting sub standard cricket that only put the game to shame. Imagine this game was tagged as a first class match played over three days.

In the end CCC earned the required amount of points to pip Bloomfield out of the top spot to emerge 'Sara' Trophy champions for the current season.

CCC certainly deserve to win the mantle if the game was played in the correct spirit. According to fans, who watched this match it turned out to be a "big sham". Runs flowed like flood waters. Was this an arranged about, they asked.

Are trophies more important than the game? One could understand if this match was played at Campbell Park or at the Prisons grounds, but certainly not at a test venue at Maitland Crescent and the home of many cricketing legends in the past.

This sort of third grade cricket is nothing new when it came to competitive cricket here which is a disgrace to this great game of character building played by 22 flannelled fools.

A similar act was performed by Police S.C and Old Cambrians at the Katubedda Campus grounds in Moratuwa, in Dec. 1989.

In two days 1008 runs were scored by the respective teams (Dec. 2 and 3).

Even the media couldn't cover this match, apparently the excuse being for security reasons. The headline read; Poor bowling tall scoring - what a farce. Apparently it could have gone to the record books of Sri Lanka cricket. This could have happened in either a Div.. II or Div. III match, but not in the top division as evinced in the CCC- Sinha SC match.

Pity the fans who missed a batting fiesta - with big hitting being the order against wayward bowling by either team. Even the junior grade cricketers could have bowled better, rather than allow the batsmen the freedom of playing strokes all round the wicket.

According to fans this was evident in the CCC - Sinha match, too. This type of cricket only reveals the deteorating standards in Div. I cricket. Even in a softball match played on village paddy fields this type of tall scoring is hardly heard of.

Are some of these clubs fit to play in the top division, or do they have the facilities to play at the highest level? Is this the much-talked of development in the outstations by those who run its affairs?

If they have the game at heart then they will never encourage this sort of third grade cricket even if they have to lose at the next general meeting.

The infrastructure needs a change for the greater good of the game, and for a better future. If first class cricket is to emerge, then in keeping with international standards then it should be confined to eight or ten teams.

This is the candid opinion among past cricketers where the best eight or ten vying for honours - with a relegation and promotion system. This happened during the time of late Mr. Robert Senanayake etc., but it's sad to mention that lot of talking has been done by the hierarchy but has failed to take a positive step to overcome the malady. If this happened, then apparently some of the officials may lose votes at the next A.G.M. Hope the present Interim Committee appointed by the Sports Ministry put an end to this on- going malady for the game to reach higher levels as done by other cricketiing nations. There may be power politics, but certainly not at the expense of the game. The Tournament Committee, too is answerable for this deteriorating standard of the game. In other countries no postponements are given. Matches are played on schedule. Even the umpires are known before the start of the season, including the venues. But in Sri Lanka matches are put off for the whims and fancies of interested parties. This attributed to weak management.

Herewith is given the scores of the match between Police SC. and Old Cambrians which will bring back nostalgic memories to the readers.

Old Cambrians 228 in 27.5 overs in105 mts (Bandula de Silva 94, P.K Serasinghe 6 for 105 off 11 overs) and 273 in 54.2 overs in 160 mts. (Bandula de Silva 55, Saman de Silva 2, Gamini Silva 7 for 106). Police S.C 210 in 45 overs in 145 mts (Bandula Gunaratne 58, R. Palliyaguru 3 for 37, L. Fernando 3 for 34, C Perera 3 for 36) and 297 in 60.2 overs in 184 mts. (B.N.R Senasinghe 51, J. Paranathala 61, Gamini Silva 51, P.S Himbutugoda 50, R. Paliyaguru 5 for 75, C Perera 4 for 71). Police won by 6 runs.

It's given to understand that protest had been made by Bloomfield C and A.C. and Colts CC over the potponed CCC-Sinha SC match to the Tournament Committee.

One hopes that this will be sorted out amicably by the T.C. Otherwise this too may end up in the portals of the Hulftsdorp for a ruling. Recently a Supreme Court Judge had this to say, where cases pertaining to sports were being heard in the Courts. "It looks like they are not being played in the playing fields, but in the courts", he remarked.

In other countries fixture list for the year - Internatioanl (Test), first class and all minor (be it minor countries or grade cricket) are included, in a brochure for the avid fans. No postponments whatsoever - but all on schedule, unlike here which is the main cause for the ongoing problems.

Rohana, will not be re-called

Sri Lanka and CR & FC's, granite-hard prop forwad Shanta Rohana now playing for Pirate Harbour in Sydney, Asustralia, is showing up well in the league.

According to Chairman of the Rugby selection panel Group Capt. Tikiri Marambe, when interviewed by The Sunday Times, whether Shanta Rohana be re-called for the forthcoming internationals against Chana and N.E. Territories annual contest? said 'No'. There is no truth whatsoever, though it appeared in a daily paper, he said.

Are you aware, some players have opted to keep out from the forthcoming contests for personal reasons? Whether its genuine or otherwise it's up to them to decide. Ofcourse if they are injured no one could blame them, he replied. "Surprisingly some of them are fit to play for their clubs but not for the country. Put the country before self. As for Haris Omar Kandy SC's tough forward he has brought to our notice that he will only play in the Clifford Cup K.O. as he has pre-planned to undergo surgery to his knee - recurring injury."

Rohana's contract to play for Pirate Harbour R.F.C. was made possible due to the good offices of Dilip Kumar, who is Sri Lanka's rugby rep. in Australia. - BW

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