Gerry Gooneratne dies

Gerry Gooneratne, one of the finest and most respected coaches produced by Sri Lanka during the last 50 years, passed away on Wednesday following a brief illness. He was 84.

Gooneratne, a left-handed batsman and left-arm seam bowler, was also a distinguished cricketer, playing for St Joseph's College for three seasons (1934-36) before joining Saracens SC and later SSC. He also played for the national side.

Aged just 20, he narrowly missed out on a debut century against India, scoring 96 in an unofficial Test in Bombay in 1940-41. During the 1960s he became a national selector and, in 1976, was appointed chairman of the selectors.

However, it was as a coach that Gooneratne made an indelible mark. He coached Nalanda College - one of Sri Lanka's big cricket schools - for an astonishing 35 years.

A strict disciplinarian, who fiercely opposed the introduction of limited cricket into schools, he was also served as a national coach.