The victories that made Sri Lankans smile

By Wijaya Lakshman Ranasinghe

Sri Lanka sports took a dramatic turn on September (11) when our men’s cricket team and the women’s netball teams hoisted the national flag high up in the Asian region by emerging Asian champions in cricket and netball respectively.

The support and enthusiasm of the public was visible from the thousands who lined up in the streets from Katunayake to Colombo. To a country that suffers from the ugly political and economic setbacks these two victories brought a smile on to the dull faces of the Lankans.

The two teams performances cannot be matched to any other country in the Asian region as they rode to glory with resounding victories combined with excellent performance. In both disciplines the players exhibit a high quality performance backed by the cheering and the support of the Lankan expatriated in Singapore and in the Emirates.
A special tribute should be given to the young Sri Lankan cricketers who overcame the criticisms from various parts when they lost the first match to Afghanistan. The parts who criticized them never thought that losing a match is not the end of the tournament. The way the youngsters combined as one outfit and the dedication brought results at the end to silence the critics.

Defeating the Asian cricket giants India and Pakistan is not a fluke. The way the cricketers performed after the loss to the Afghans was visible to the end. The inspiring leadership of Dasun Shanaka who got the best out of each player is the secret behind this glorious victory. As a captain he led the side from the front in all three departments is good example for the schoolboy cricketers who in future may walk into the national side.

In an open hearted interview after the match, skipper Shanaka said that he had the confidence in his players and allowed them to perform independently. Said he stands by them and requested to have confidence and trust on them.

Every member of the team gave the skipper and the coaching staff what they expected as the batsmen right down to the tail made good contributions that made the total big and the bowlers bowled to the field reading the opponents weaknesses. A fielding side that looked like panthers never allowed anything to get pass them and they made catches out of the balls that flew over their heads to the boundary.

A captain who studied every batsman who walks to the middle made field placing with the correct man in the correct position. All in all let this will be the foundation for much bigger events to come such as the ICC World Cup and the T20I that round the corner.

A population of 22 million people rose up to salute both teams on their arrival as Asian champs. Now it is high time to leave the Asian Championship a side for a while and concentrate to win the World T20i that will start in a fortnight in Australia.

Every Sri Lankan is thankful to the man with a silver lining, the coach the selectors and the admin staff for their untiring efforts in grooming a bunch of young and a talented cubs making them to be recognized all over the world.