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| Wednesday, 10 November 2004 |
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End of the road for 'Little Kalu' by Sa'adi Thawfeeq To be omitted from the 20-member training squad for next month's cricket tour to New Zealand was the last straw for the diminutive right-handed wicket-keeper batsman Romesh Kaluwitharana who announced his retirement from cricket yesterday. Since exploding into the international circuit with a stunning century (132 not out off 158 balls) on his Test debut against Allan Border's Australians at the SSC in 1992, 'Little Kalu' as he was affectionately referred to by former England captain and popular TV commentator Tony Greig, has flirted dangerously with his international career being dropped and then recalled umpteen number of times during his chequered career. "I must have made 20 to 30 comebacks in my career but I don't want to drag it on for the sake of it. I think the time is now right to go," said Kaluwitharana who will be 35 on November 24. In a carefully worded press statement Kaluwitharana stated: "I wish to inform all my cricket fans that I have decided to retire from cricket. It was my duty to bring fame to my country by playing to the best of my ability. However I am more willing to support the game of cricket through the experience I have gained in any other capacity. "It is with a lot of happiness that I acknowledge all who supported me from my first Test hundred to my final Test fifty." Kaluwitharana signed off his international career by scoring 54 in the second Test against Pakistan at Karachi early this month. His career which looked rosy and permanent at one time suddenly became shaky and uncertain as his high-risk approach saw him fail to bring about a certain degree of consistency to his batting. It earned him a reputation for inconsistency which was the result of him making several comebacks in his career. He ends his career with 1933 runs (avg. 26.12) from 49 Tests (3 centuries and nine fifties) and 3711 runs (avg. 22.22) from 189 one-day internationals (2 centuries and 23 fifties) - figures that really don't convey his natural ability as an explosive and entertaining batsman. It was not until the 1995-96 tour to Australia that Kaluwitharana commanded a regular place in the national team. He struck a destructive opening partnership with Sanath Jayasuriya that was to win his country the World Cup a few months later. The pair attacked the bowling from the beginning making full use of the field restrictions in the first 15 overs to lay the foundations for big totals. They helped change the face of the one-day game. Kaluwitharana's exuberant, dashing style won the hearts of many a fan, and destroyed the hearts of many a bowler. A tidy, if excitable performer behind the stumps, it was as an explosive batsman that Kaluwitharana enjoyed his finest moments. His place became less assured with the emergence of Kumar Sangakkara in 2000. He finishes his career behind the stumps as the wicket-keeper with the most number of stumpings in one-day cricket - 75, to add to his 132 catches which gave him a total of 207 dismissals. In Test cricket he had 119 dismissals - 93 caught and 26 stumped. An outstanding product of St. Sebastian's College, Moratuwa, Kaluwitharana represented Sebastianites, Galle CC, BRC, Moratuwa SC and Colts in the Premier trophy tournament. For much of his career he was employed at Nawaloka before he joined Insurance Corporation his present employer. His coach and mentor at school was Brother Nimal Gurusinghe who shaped his career during its formative years. He was a tower of strength to Kaluwitharana during the ups and downs he went through in his career. Kaluwitharana was instrumental in introducing the popular indoor cricket at Austasia to this country being one of the pioneers although he is currently not involved in it. Kaluwitharana signs off by thanking everyone - his family, team-mates, fans and friends 'for all the support I received over the years' and also wishes Sri Lankan cricket 'all the best for the future'. He also had a special word of thanks to Tony Greig whom he said 'always had very special words to mention about me during his commentaries.' |
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