Archives

by Chris Dhambarage

Isipatana with a penetrative bowling attack will have the edge when they take on the traditional rivals Thurstan in their 40th annual Big Match at the SSC grounds, Maitland Place starting today.

Isipatana have proved their capabilities with the ball on a number of occasions and their two outright victories against St. Benedict's and Dharmasoka College Ambalangoda in the Elephant Lemonade Cup 'A' division league tournament is a clear indication of their strength. They have bowled out some of the strong batting sides in the current inter school cricket season and have also come closer to winning a couple of more games too.

Thurstan have rallied around through their senior players but have failed to deliver anything extra ordinary in the current inter school cricket season. They have been making steady progress while concentrating on teamwork and their preparations for the Big Match has been quite good.

However for the sheer commitment and determination Isipatana are somewhat ahead from their rivals having started the season on a bad note. They were beaten at the hands of Lumbini MV in their second outing of the season but thereafter they really got their act together well to play more attractive and positive cricket. This has certainly produced good results in the past and now they have formed a perfect combination capable of holding any opposition.

The Thurstanites are hoping that their batting would continue with the same form having made good scores in their last couple of outings. The key player in their line up is no doubt skipper Damith Indika who has two scores of over 150 runs against Maliyadeva College Kurunegala and Nalanda. He would like to produce a repeat performance not only because of the importance of the Big Match but the fate of his side too will depend on the number of runs he scores.

Like the Thurstan skipper, Oshadee Navaragodagedera the captain of Isipatana too is an important player having spearheaded their bowling attack successfully throughout the season.

The right arm off spinner played a major role in both their outright victories this year and is determined to produce an impressive performance in the Big Match. His figures are quite outstanding in the Elephant Lemonade Cup tournament with over 50 wickets to his credit.

The Isipatana batting however does not look the same and will need to produce an improved performance if they are to make a match of it. Last week too they missed a good opportunity of beating St. Aloysius College Galle when they lost seven wickets while chasing a total of just over one hundred runs. The main batting contributions have come from the vice captain Saman Nishantha, Anushka Bandara, Chanuka Perera and Chaminda Prasad.

In fact Saman Nishantha has sweet memories where the Big Match is concerned having hit a career best 150 not out against Thurstan last year. But he has failed to live upto expectations in the current season and has scored just over 450 runs in the Elephant Lemonade Cup tournament.

Thurstan (from): Damith Indika (captain), Asela Umayangana, Harsha Perera, Thilina Masmulla, Shane Aravinda, Shehan Perera, Sumithra Warnasuriya, Sandaruwan Wijesundera, Sithuka Gamage, Jeevan Chamikara, Charith Wickremaratne, Dinesh Perera, Damith Sanka, Deepal de Silva, Gayan Amarasinghe, Roshan Balasuriya, Dilan Gunaratne, Osuka Maharachchi.

Isipatana (from): Oshadee Navaragodagedera (captain), Saman Nishantha, Chanuka Perera, Anushka Bandara, Isuru Vindana, Chirantha de Silva, Kaushika Kumarasinghe, Thusitha Weeraratne, Damith Arjuna, Lakshan Samarasena, Visuddhi Kaluwitharana, Pubudu Piyumantha, Vimukthi Deshappriya, M. Sameeran, Amila Isurendra, Chaminda Prasad, Gayan Seneviratne, Ashan Bandara, Chatura Ranaweera, Dilan Anuradha, Sanjaya Dilruksha.

News | Business | Features | Editorial | Security
Politics | World | Letters | Sports | Obituaries |

Produced by Lake House
Copyright 2001 The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd.
Comments and suggestions to :Web Manager