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Tuesday, 16 August 2011

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England crowned , Indians dethroned

India continued their wretched run in the Test series against England capitulating by an innings and 242 runs in the Third Test to send the home team to the top of the Test rankings. This a major upset given the hype that accompanied the Indians following their World Cup win. This is also good for cricket as it injects a competiveness that is welcome.

England has worked very hard to get to the top. Starting with their tremendous success in the Ashes series against Australia down under, they have continued to play the better cricket against Sri Lanka and have now dethroned India as world Test champions to proudly sport that crown.

Playing in conditions that they are used to and with their batsmen, bowlers and fielders performing better than the Indians, they simply outplayed the visitors in very department of the game and sent them tumbling to their third defeat in a row. This must surely be galling to the team from the sub continent.

As an excuse for this thrashing, India will cite too much limited over cricket starting with the 2011 World Cup and the Indian Premier League Twenty20 bash. But being professionals, they need not be told that excuses, however good, are unacceptable once in the big league.

Indians dethroned

With their dethroning, daggers will be out with the media and former Indian greats taking the team to the cleaners and demanding for wholesale changes with some even asking for the scalp of Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni. The media and the greats cannot be faulted given the magnitude of the downfall.

India's fault was that they have not been able to shed their limited over attitude and settle down to playing the longer version of the game.

Also they do not seem to be interested in the longer version of the game and seem to just going through the motions in Test cricket.

Sad when one considers that they played hard and good cricket to wear the crown as world champions. But in the end the inherent capacity of team will show up when put to the real "Test." One shudders to think of the calamity if they lose the final Test beginning at the Oval on Thursday.

In the Third Test opener Alistair Cook spoilt the soup for the Indians.

The Consistent Cook has been scoring an avalanche of runs for his team and is set to make many, many more runs and break all batting records held by their former greats.

But Cook will be encouraged to be a bit more aggressive and push for quick runs when well set. At the moment he is at times painfully slow. If he becomes a bit more aggressive, he will have all the time in the world to attempt breaking West Indian Brian Lara's individual batting record of 400 not out.

The two Fernandos honoured

Past and veteran soccerites of St. Benedict's College honoured their football coach Albert Fernando when they conducted a five-a-side soccer tournament in memory of him on Saturday at the college grounds in Kotahena.

All Bens who were coached by the maestro were present in their numbers and every one of them spoke in glowing terms of Fernando, of the brilliant players he produced and the number of teams he made champions out of. In fact champions out of nothing!

Fernando was an excellent centre forward - now a centre forward is called striker - and played and captained the green, white and green school with great distinction.

A story told about him is this. When he was captain he had arrived a couple of minutes late for a match against arch rival St. Joseph's College.

The Prefect of Games at that time was a Czechoslovakian Christian Brother Ladislauz. He was a stickler for discipline and punctuality. To him captain or best player was imaterial. He dropped Fernando and at the end of the game lectured to him on the values of discipline and punctuality.

'Walking Wisden'

This story was told to me by that walking Wisden on St.Benedict's College cricket and football Patrick Perera and every time I reminded Fernando of this incident he confirmed it and paid tribute to Bro. Ladislauz and said that it went to make him what he was in life later on.

Fernando instilled discipline and punctuality on every one he coached and some of them still speak in awe whenever Fernando and the marvellous deeds he performed for the school is talked about. Fernando was my teacher and in latter life was a dear friend.

Fernando was the first Sri Lankan to be armed with a trainer's license from the home of football Brazil. An Old Ben Varatharasa who was Sri Lanka's Ambassador in Brazil and a classmate of Fernando obtained for him a scholarship.

This enabled Fernando to train with the great Pele and several other Brazilian greats and that was the era when the Brazilians ruled the football world.

Fernando was also a national coach.

Later he obtained a trainer's license from West Germany and used his knowledge to produce many footballing greats and champion teams. Fernando produced several greats who played for the country and the names that come to mind are -Vincent Perera and his brother Bertipala, Eric Perera, Solomons, the Fernandez brothers Chandrapala and Lionel, Sampoornam and Nithi Nicholas, Bana Rajaratnam, Neville Casiechetty, Denzil Walles, Rex Sebastian, Rozen Rodrigo, Errol Anthony, Tilak Pieris, Sunil Seneviratne, Lionel Dabera, Edward Jayawardena, Arasaratnam and Wanigaratnam and goal keepers Nugera, Issac Wenaden, Lawrence Fernando, Vijay Silva and Gamini Perera.

Outstanding

The Bens are also honouring a coach and outstanding goal keeper who sported national colours Lawrence Fernando. He was a national coach and Ratnam Football Club is what it is in the game in the country today is because Fernando sweated and toiled to keep the club alive when it was threatened with closure.

There was a big crowd to take in the football action. The Bens promise to make this an annual affair and the two Fernandos - Albert and Lawrence deserve it.

It is hoped that the past basketball and hockey players will take the cue from the footballers and organize similar tournaments in honour of Ram Suntheralingam and Brian Assey who made the school undisputed champions in these two sports in the 1950s and 60s.

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