SRI LANKA CRICKET NEWS (DECEMBER 2021) Compiled by Victor Melder
Sri Lanka beat the touring West Indies by 164 runs to win the second and final Test played at the Galle International Cricket Stadium. Scores:
Sri Lanka – 1st Innings – 204 (Nissanka 73, Karunaratne 42, Mathews 29, Permaul 5/35, Warrican 4/50, Chase 1/64)
West Indies – 1st Innings 253 (Brathwaite 72, Blackwood 44, Mayers 36no, Bonner 35, Mendis 6/70, Jayawickrama 2/59, Embuldeniya 2/94)
Sri Lanka – 2nd Innings (de Silva 155, Nissanka 66, Mendis 25, Parmaul 3/106, Chase 2/82, Brathwaite 1/11, Holder 1/26)
West Indies – 2nd Innings – 132 (Bonner 44, Blackwood 36, Embuldeniya 5/35, Mendis 5/66_
Player of the Match: Dhananjaya de Silva (Sri Lanka)
Player of the Series: Ramesh Mendis (Sri Lanka)
Sri Lanka won the 2-match series 2-0
Test Debut: Charith Asalanka (Sri Lanka)
Points: Sri Lanka 12, West Indies 0
Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka are set to begin 2022 with three ODIs as part of the ICC Super League, with Sri Lanka hosting the series. The three games will be day-night fixtures scheduled for January 16, 18 and 21, and will be played at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Kandy. Zimbabwe are currently placed bottom of the Super League table with two wins from their nine games, while Sri Lanka are sixth in the 13-team league, with four wins from 15 games. The Super League is a qualification path to the 2023 ODI World Cup, with the top eight teams qualifying directly, while the remaining five will be pooled with five Associate teams in a qualifying tournament. Two teams will go through to the World Cup from that tournament. By virtue of hosting the 2023 World Cup, India have automatically qualified, effectively making the Super League a battle for the next seven spots. Zimbabwe are currently tied on 25 points with the Netherlands, but have played five matches fewer. “Every game is very important for us because Super League games will decide who can qualify automatically, hence it is important that we prepare well and start well,” Zimbabwe head coach Lalchand Rajput said. “I am a very confident person and always believe that we can beat Sri Lanka, considering that we have had good game time playing the Pro50 tournament [Zimbabwe’s domestic List A competition].” Zimbabwe’s last ODI in the Super League was part of a three-match series against Ireland in September, which ended 1-1. The teams split points in the washed out second ODI. Sri Lanka also last played in the Super League in September, beating South Africa 2-1 in a home series. “We have not started off well in the Super League, but I am confident that with the players in form during the Pro50 matches, we will do well against Sri Lanka,” Rajput said. “If we play our best cricket and to our potential, with our best players, there is every chance that we can qualify directly.” (Cricinfo)
Two Sri Lanka Cricket ground staff at the Sooriyawewa Stadium in Hambantota have died in what is believed to have been an elephant attack, the board confirmed. Not many details have been released with regard to the attacks, though it is being speculated the attack may have been as a result of a sole elephant. The bodies of the two staff members, who were cycling home after work around 9pm local time, are understood to have been found several hundred metres apart. The incident, which occurred in the vicinity of the stadium, comes a little over a week prior to the ongoing Lanka Premier League matches shifting from Colombo to Hambantota for the Eliminator, Qualifiers and Final. The Eliminator and first Qualifier will take place on December 19. Elephant attacks are not uncommon in rural Sri Lanka, with the human-elephant conflict a longstanding issue. The problem has become more widespread since the end of the 30-year civil war in 2009, following which the country’s development plans saw areas previously straddled by native wildlife encroached upon by humans resulting in habitat loss. Hambantota has been one of the areas which has been most affected in this sense. Last year, 10 elephants and four humans killed in the area alone. Hambantota, once known for its wildlife, is now in the midst of a major development drive. It currently boasts of a port, airport and highway, while the establishment of a new city will reportedly use up some 20,000 acres of land. An elephant management zone has been proposed by way of a solution, though this has yet to be gazetted by the government, something which had resulted in protests by farmers in Hambantota earlier this year. Cricinfo, 5.12.2021)
