SRI LANKA CRICKET NEWS
(SEPTEMBER 2024)
Compiled by Victor Melder
The touring Sri Lankans were beaten by England by 109 runs in the second Test played at Lord’s. London. Scores:
England, 1st Innings – 427 (Root 143, Atkinson 118, Duckett 40, Brock 33, Asitha Fernando 5/102, Ratnayake 2/89, Kumara 2/101.
Sri Lanka, 1st Innings – 196 (Kumundu Mendis 74, Chandimal 23, Mathews 22, Potts 2/19, Woakes 2/21, Atkinson 2/40, Stone 2/70)
England, 2nd Innings – 251 (Root 103, Brook 37, Smith 26, Duckett 24, Asitha Fernando 3/52, Kumara 2/53, Ratnayake 2/36)
Sri Lanka, 2nd Innings – 292 (Chandimal 58, Karunaratne 55, de Silva 50, Mathews 36, Atkinson 5/62, Woakes 2/46, Stone 2/56
Player of the Match: Gus Atkinson (England)
Points: England 12, Sri Lanka 0.
The touring Sri Lankans beat England by 8 wickets to win the third and final Test, played at Kennington Oval, London. Scores:
England, 1st Innings – 325 (Pope 154, Duckett 86, Ratnayake 3/56, de Silva 2/18, Vishwa Fernando 2/46, Kumara 2/97)
Sri Lanka, 1st Innings – 263 (de Silva 69, Nissanka 64, Kumundu Mendis 64, Stone 3/35, Hull 3/53, Woakes 2/42)
England 2nd Innings – 156 (Smith 67, Lawrence 35, Kumara 4/21, Vishva Fernando 3/40, Asitha Fernando 2/49)
Sri Lanka, 2nd Innings – 219/2 (Nissanka 127no, Kusal Mendis 39, Mathews 32no, Atkinson 1/44)
Plyer of the Match: Palitha Nissanka (Sri Lanka)
Test Debut: Josh Hull (England)
Player of the Series: Joe Root (England)
England won the 3-match series 2-1
Points: Sri Lanka 12, England 0.
The New Zealand Test team arrived in Sri Lanka today (14th) for their two-match Test series. Sri Lanka will play a six-day Test match against New Zealand with a one-day rest in between due to the Presidential election next month.The first match will be held from September 18 to 23, with a rest day on September 21 due to the Presidential election. Both matches will be played at Galle: 1st Test: September 18-23 2nd Test: September 26-30 (Ceylon Today, 15.9.2024)
Top-order batter Oshada Fernando has returned to Sri Lanka’s Test fold following an 18-month absence, but this means there is no room for opening batter Nishan Madushka in Sri Lanka’s 16-man squad for this month’s two-Test series against New Zealand at home. Of those that toured England, fast-bowling allrounder Nisala Tharaka and seamer Kasun Rajitha are the other two to be left out. Oshada’s return follows an impressive showing with the A team, who are currently touring South Africa .The 32-year-old batter, who has played 21 Tests, struck 122 and 80 on the way to a Player-of-the-Match showing, as Sri Lanka A won the first of two unofficial Tests in Kimberley. The performances were enough for the selectors to curtail his time in South Africa and shoehorn him into a Test squad for the first time since March 2023. Madushka was unsurprisingly the odd man out, following a difficult tour of England where he accumulated scores of 4, 0, 7 and 13 over the first two Tests before being dropped for the third. His replacement at the top of the order, Pathum Nissanka struck a match-winning century in the final Teest, which now means there is no natural spot in the playing XI for the 25-year-old wicketkeeper. Neither Tharaka nor Rajitha played a game in England, and with the seamers that did – Asitha Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Vishwa Fernando and Milan Rathnayake – impressing, Sri Lanka’s seam contingent was already overstocked considering the spin-friendly conditions expected in Galle. Despite his recall, though, Oshada might find it difficult to secure a spot in what is a fairly settled batting order. Dimuth Karunaratne, Nissanka, Kusal Mendis, Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews, Dhananjaya de Silva and Kamindu Mendis are all likely to retain their places in the XI, while Ramesh Mendis might slot in at No. 8 to bolster both the batting and spin-bowling ranks. There is also Sadeera Samarawickrama waiting in the wings. With the remaining three slots going to lead spinner Prabath Jayasuriya and two others – likely two seamers, or possibly even an extra spinner in Jeffrey Vandersay – it’s hard to see where Oshada fits in unless one of the senior men in Mathews or Karunaratne makes way. Both Tests will take place in Galle with the first Test beginning on September 18. Sri Lanka Test squad against New Zealand
Dhananjaya de Silva (capt), Dimuth Karunaratne, Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal, Kamindu Mendis, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Oshada Fernando, Asitha Fernando, Vishwa Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Prabath Jayasuriya, Ramesh Mendis, Jeffrey Vandersay, Milan Rathnayake (Daily Island, 17.9.2024)
Sri Lanka beat the touring New Zealander’s by 63 runs in the first Test played at the Galle International Stadium. Scores:
Sri Lanka, 1st Innings – 305 (Kamindu Mendis 114, Kusal Mendia 50, Mathews 36, Chandimal 30, O’Rourke 5/55, hillips 2/52, Patel 2/60)
New Zealand, 1st Innings – 340 (Latham 70, Mitchell 57, Williamson 55, Phillips 49, Ravindra 39, Jayasuriya 4/136, Ramesh Mendis 3/101, de Silva 2/31)
Sri Lanka, 2nd Innings – 309 (Karunaratne 83, Chandimal 61, Mathews 50, de Silva 40, Patel 6/90, O’Rourke 3/49)
New Zealand, 2nd Innings – 211 (Ravindra 92, Williamson 30, Blundell 30, Jayasuriya 5/68, Ramesh Mendis 3/83)
Player of the Match: Prabath Jayasuria (Sri Lanka)
Points; Sri Lanka 12, New Zealand 0.
Sri Lanka beat the touring New Zealander’s by an Innings and 154 runs, with a day to spare, in the second and final first Test played at the Galle International Stadium. Scores:
Sri Lanka, 1st Innings – 602/5 dec (Kamindu Mendis 182, Chandimal 116, Kusal Mendis 102no, Mathews 88, Karunaratne 46, de Silva 44, Phillips 3/144)
New Zealand, 1stTinnngs – 88 (Santner 29, Jayasuriya 6/42, Pieris 3/33)
New Zealand, 2nd Innings – 360 (Phillips 78, Conway 61, Blundell 60, Williamson 46, Pieris 6/170, Jayasuriya 3/139)
Test Debut: Nishan Peiris (Sri Lanka)
Player of the Match: Kamindu Mendis (Sri Lanka)
Player of the Series: Prabath Jayasuriya.
Sri Lanka won the 2-match series, 2-0.
Points: Sri Lanka 12, New Zealand 0.
Cricketer Niroshan Dickwella has become the first national cricketer to be slapped with a three-year ban from all forms of the game after failing a doping test. Earlier, Dickwella was provisionally suspended by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) after testing positive for cocaine, a banned narcotic, following tests conducted by the Sri Lanka Anti-Doping Agency (SLADA) during the Lanka Premier League (LPL) 2024, where Dickwella led Galle Marvels. Now, he has been handed a three-year suspension following a hearing on August 23, where a three-member anti-doping disciplinary panel handed down the ban, effective from August 13, 2024. This marks a significant low point for Dickwella, who opted not to request a B-sample test, effectively conceding to the charges. The disciplinary panel, comprising President’s Counsel Uditha Egalahewa, Prof. Rohini Fernandopulle, and Dr. Nimal Herath Gunaratne, reached their conclusion after thorough deliberation, officially notifying Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) and other relevant authorities. The 31-year-old, who had captained Galle Marvels in LPL 2024, last turned out for the national side in March 2023 but had received a call-up for Sri Lanka’s T20I series against Bangladesh earlier this year. He did not feature in a single game. Following his selection, the selectors intimated that they had spoken with Dickwella over his poor disciplinary record. The left-handed batter has been no stranger to controversy throughout his career, with his off-field lifestyle proving a lightning rod for criticism in light of his frequently erratic form. He was most notably among three players banned for breaching bio-bubble protocols in 2021, alongside Kusal Mendis and Danushka Gunathilake. Dickwella has kept wicket for Sri Lanka across formats, scoring 2,757 runs in Tests, 1,604 in ODIs, and 480 in T20Is. (Ceylon Today, 30.9.2024)
Sanath Jayasuriya has been appointed as the head coach of the Sri Lanka men’s cricket team for a one-year term by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC). Jayasuriya took on the role of interim head coach in July this year for the series against India after Silverwood chose not to extend his contract, which had initially been extended to cover the England series.During his interim tenure, Sri Lanka won a 2-0 ODI series against India in August, rebounding after a challenging T20 series. The team also secured a significant win at The Oval during the series in England, despite losing the series 2-1, which bolstered his case for the permanent role. In the ongoing series against New Zealand, Sri Lanka is currently leading 1-0, with a chance to win the two-match series 2-0. (Daily Mirror, 30.9.2024)
