Guy de Alwis – Fearless and forthright-by Rex Clementine

Former wicketkeeper batsman’s eighth death anniversary today

Source:Island

Today falls the eighth death anniversary of one of Sri Lankan cricket’s early heroes – Guy De Alwis. A swashbuckling wicket-keeper batsman, De Alwis made his Test debut in 1983 in Christchurch along with six other players after the national team had been depleted following the rebel tour to South Africa.

De Alwis was a regular member of the side in 1980s and his finest moment with the bat came in the 1983 World Cup when he posted back to back half-centuries, needless to say in double quick time.

As a schoolboy, De Alwis represented S. Thomas’ College and made an immediate impression making a half-century in his first Royal-Thomian encounter following in the footsteps of another fine Thomian wicket-keeper batsman – Ajit Jayasekara.

Post retirement he was heavily involved in coaching and then took over as Chairman of Selectors in 2002. His tenure as Chief Selector was one of the most successful ones in our cricket as De Alwis provided opportunities for many young players.

With De Alwis, no one owned permanent positions or slots in the side. Consistency was the currency for selection. He regularly rested seniors for dead rubbers and wasn’t afraid to shuffle the batting order with the backing of coach Dav Whatmore. His ways of challenging the seniors brought the best out them.

Not that De Alwis was against seniors. He was instrumental in bringing back forgotten players like Hashan Tillakaratne and Aravinda de Silva into the ODI outfit and both players proved to be huge assets as Sri Lanka finished the 2003 World Cup as losing semi-finalists. Six months prior to that, Sri Lanka were joint winners in the Champions Trophy after the final against India was a washout.

In modern day cricket, being a selector is a tough ask as you are constantly under pressure due to numerous requests by politicians to accommodate various players. With De Alwis it was no exception but the fearless man he is, Guy always maintained the integrity of office. He did not bow down to pressure and eventually politicians had their way removing him as Chairman of Selectors.

But Guy’s guts and fearlessness was appreciated by many. He was far-sighted, innovative and honest; attributes that those who wish to be selectors need to have. His death eight years ago at the age of 52 was a massive blow for the game. Cricket lost a dear friend.