Mahanama still very much in demand (14 August 1999)

14 August 1999

Mahanama still very much in demand

Sa'adi Thawfeeq

Roshan Mahanama is in big demand in cricket circles after he quit the international scene last week.

The former Sri Lanka cricketer is considering offers to play for Boland in South Africa's domestic competition and for an undisclosed club in Melbourne, Australia.

According to Mahanama, the South African offer is a good one, but he has to decide whether it is worth playing at first-class level when he has already retired from international cricket.

"I don't think its worth playing cricket at that level when I am not vying for a place in the national team," said Mahanama.

The Australian offer seems more like the one Mahanama has in mind as it does not demand any great effort, but allows him to enjoy the game he loves so much.

"The Australian offer will allow me to take my family along with me. But I have left my options open as there is no immediate urgency to make up my mind right now. The Australian season does not commence until October," said Mahanama.

He denied he had any thoughts of settling down in Australia as another former Sri Lanka cricketer Asanka Gurusinha had done.

Gurusinha, a member of Sri Lanka's World Cup winning team of 1996 like Mahanama, retired from international cricket soon afterwards and now plays district cricket for a club in Melbourne.

"I think I still have some cricket left in me and I want to enjoy myself," said Mahanama, who works for a freight forwarding company.

Not only has Mahanama received offers from abroad but he has also been approached to do cricket commentaries and coaching locally. But at the moment he has put everything on hold as he takes a vacation off with his family.

The 33-year-old cricketer who dazzled the world with his electrifying fielding and elegant batsmanship represented his country in 52 Tests and 213 one-day internationals from 1986 to 1999, accumulating over 7,000 runs in both types of games.

He announced his retirement from international cricket last week after being overlooked for the one-day and Test squads to play India and Australia.

Source :: The Daily News (https://www.lanka.net/lakehouse/)