While lauding Sri Lanka’s efforts of reaping a harvest of 262 medals at the 2019 South Asian Games (SAG), the minister said it is no big deal to win medals at the regional event. He said Sri Lanka’s focus should not be the SAG but winning laurels at Asian Games, Asian Para Games, Commonwealth Games, Olympic Games and Paralympic Games.
It was almost embarrassing to watch England’s batsmen show more proficiency and technique in playing in tough, spinning conditions, showing the caution that Sri Lanka threw to the wind yesterday – ostensibly what the home team’s batsmen considered their best approach of setting a match winning target. However, it was not the plan discussed in the dressing room, Head Coach Mickey Arthur said yesterday after the defeat.
The hosts have lost their last five home Tests against England and defeat in the second Test, which starts at the Galle International Stadium today, will see Sri Lanka lose consecutive Tests in Galle for the first time.
Bottom seeds Chathurya Nilaweera and Thehan Wijemanne pulled off a stunning win over the top seeds Sankha Athukorala and Yasitha de Silva to clinch the Men’s Doubles title at the 105th National Tennis Championships played at the SLTA Courts in Green Path yesterday.
Sri Lanka was awarded Test status back in 1981 and played their first Test match in 1982 at a time when there were eight clubs in the top division. Performing notably enough to ascend to ICC Full-Membership spoke volumes for the talent produced from the leading clubs at the time.
Second seeded Yasitha de Silva and top seeded Anika Seneviratne clinched the Men’s and Women’s Open singles title of the 105th National Tennis Championships by coming out victorious in the final played at the SLTA tennis courts in Greenpath, Colombo today.
Sri Lanka’s bowling coach David Saker admitted that the home side had not been good enough to combat an authoritative Joe Root and failed to put pressure on debutant Dan Lawrence early in his innings, as England piled on a 180-run first innings lead to take command of the first Test by the end of the second day in Galle today.
Defending champion Sharmal Dissanayake, the top seed, and Yasitha de Silva, the bottom seeded player, booked their berths to the final of the Men’s Opens singles final of the 105th National Tennis Championships when they recorded easy wins in the semi-finals played at the SLTA tennis courts in Greenpath, Colombo on Friday.
Bess, who returned figures of 5-30, combined with paceman Stuart Broad, who took three wickets, as Sri Lanka were all out in two sessions as the two-Test series resumed in Galle after the original tour was aborted over the coronavirus in March.
Top seed Sharmal Dissanayake along with second seed Yasitha de Silva and seventh seed Chathruya Nilaweera advanced to the Men’s Singles semi-finals of the 105th National Tennis Championships by recording victorious in their respective quarter-finals played at the SLTA Courts in Green Path today.
Sri Lanka wicketkeeper-batsman Niroshan Dickwella said the absence of fast-bowler Jofra Archer and talismanic all-rounder Ben Stokes, along with three further players from the English side, could tip the scales in Sri Lanka’s favour in the upcoming Test series between the two sides which is scheduled to kick-off on Thursday in Galle.
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