Shenal Rajapakse showed off his talent at a entertaining 21 birthday celebration at Trinco Bar and restaurant in Rowille – By Trevine Rodrigo The good looking young man who is one of two talented cricketers in Asoka and Nirmalie’s family, revealed his other talent as a singer in a Karaoke night to celebrate the occasion. He certainly has a plan B with his exceptional vocals. A happy crowd gathered to celebrate with Shenal and his family and the night was not out of the usual for a 21st. Invitees were dragged in to a sing-along and several responded to make it a well rounded celebration. A Smorgasbord dinner and celebratory drinks made it an eventful night. My wife Anne and I and my former journalist colleague Raine Wickrematunge and Shenal’s dad Asoka who was also a colleague at the Sun/Weekend newspaper in Sri Lanka, joined in to celebrate the important ...

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An emerging female talent from Pakistan lands cricket contract in Australia SYDNEY: Saira Jabeen, a 22-year-old emerging talent from the North of Pakistan, has secured a six-month contract with the Paramatta Women’s Grade Cricket Club in Sydney, Australia. She touched down in Australia on September 28, 2023. Hailing from the picturesque Kalash Valley, Saira Jabeen has recently earned a spot in the list of 74 women cricketers who received PCB’s first domestic women contracts for 11 months. “I have a good experience of Pakistan’s grassroots cricket, and now with this opportunity, I would gain valuable exposure to competitive cricket in Australia. I hope that by blending these experiences, I can make a significant difference in the future.” “My journey is facilitated by Mel Jones, the former Australian women’s cricket team captain and Mr. Yahya Ghaznavi from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), who played a pivotal role in connecting me with ...

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Sri Lanka selectors make calculated risk on an improving squad much in line for their unorthodox game plan – BY TREVINE RODRIGO IN MELBOURNE (Elanka Sports Editor)   Sanity has finally prevailed as Sri Lanka’s cricket selectors boldly shunned and thumbed their noses at the call for Skipper Dasun Shanaka’s sacking and stuck with a recently proven outfit for the World Cup in India. Yes, ramifications could be diabolical if the plan backfires, but it does make sense to stick with an outfit that has jelled in a way. Fourteen wins from 16 games is no mean feat although expert commentators claim that most of those wins were against ‘minnows ‘. That term has little relevance and no place in cricketing parlance anymore. This World Cup will reveal that. Informed sources say that Shanaka was given the choice of resigning and accepted it. But in true Sri Lankan fashion, a ...

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Dilshan scoops out irritating incidents – by Sunil Thenabadu Just after the illustrious cricketing career which spanned for nearly two decades performing yeoman service as an all-rounder in all formats of the game to the country, TM Dilshan the inventor/ architect of the “Dilscoop” cricket stroke that embossed his patent on the most talked about new stroke in cricket was interviewed in an discussion over a popular TV channel for 1 ½ hours. This had been eagerly watched my millions of his cricket fans with utmost passion. The presenter aptly added that Dilshan is the most talked about and trendiest person in the country subsequent to quitting the game.  Even Dilshan himself may not have known that he had such abundant crazy fans scattered island wide. The fans thronged to the Pallekelle International stadium as well as the R.Premadasa International stadium in their colossal figures to accord him a supreme exit. The style ...

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Wellalage lives up to his image – By Dinesh Weerawansa Source : sundayobserver Promising Dunith Wellalage seems to be the next rich contribution to Sri Lanka cricket from St. Joseph’s College, Colombo after former Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews. Wellalage emerged the Observer SLT Mobitel Most Popular Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year 2022. Having completed a superb final season for St. Joseph’s, he climbed to the top most level, while still being a 19-plus schoolboy. Prior to making his Test debut for Sri Lanka in July this year, young Wellalage captained Sri Lanka Under-19 with distension. When the voting for the most popular contests concluded a fortnight ago, Wellalage and Chushadi Kaushalya of Dharmapala College, Pannipitiya headed the respective Observer SLT Mobitel Most Popular Schoolboy and Schoolgirl Cricketers of the Year 2022 with convincing margins. Dunith Nethmika Wellalage was born on January 9, 2003 in Colombo. After having his initial junior ...

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Annual Homeworld Thunder Nation Cup   Cricketers with Afghan and Sri Lankan heritage have the chance to try and follow Sydney Thunder whiz kid Tanveer Sangha’s footsteps by representing their communities in the seventh edition of the Homeworld Thunder Nation Cup. While six communities will be represented in the tournament that’s played in Sydney’s western suburbs during February and March, organisers have especially urged players with Afghan and Sri Lankan backgrounds to register for their team’s upcoming selection trials. Sangha, a former East Hills Boys High student, and regarded by many critics as the ‘find’ of BBL|10 after the 19-year-old’s cunning leg-spin bowling captured 21 wickets, described his representing the Indian community as a 16-year-old as a significant milestone on his path to elite cricket. “I loved playing in the Thunder Nation Cup, it was great fun and an amazing opportunity to play at [Sydney Showground Stadium],” said Sangha, who ...

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Lafir and Stevens the famous Antonian opening pair – by Upananda Jayasundera   Source:-dailynews Legendary Antonian Cricketers A.C.M.Lafir and Ronnie Stevens were an outstanding Opening pair during their school days and are best known for producing a record first wicket partnership of 276 against Trinity College,Kandy in their 37th ‘Big Match’ in 1954. In that match Lafir scored 170 while Stevens contributed 107. Lafir was not only a great cricketer but also an outstanding Soccer player who represented Phoenix Soccer Club as a left extreme. He played for Kandy United and had the privilege of representing the country against the Ted Dexter’s XI under the captaincy of C.I.Gunasekera. Lafir scored 84 in his first match as a schoolboy and made centuries against all the leading clubs in Sri Lanka to have a tally of 50 centuries including 2 tons for Sri Lanka in the Gopalan Trophy   Match against India ...

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