The golden era of Sri Lankan cricket (13 May 1999)
A worthy, significant contribution to the literature of Sri Lankan cricket in the form of a book with the above title, written with much foresight, after many a long month of careful research, by the former test-match panel senior cricket umpire,
13-May-1999
13 May 1999
The golden era of Sri Lankan cricket
Daily News
A worthy, significant contribution to the literature of Sri Lankan
cricket in the form of a book with the above title, written with much
foresight, after many a long month of careful research, by the former
test-match panel senior cricket umpire, Ajith C. S. Perera, was
launched at a ceremony held in Colombo. Very often the dedicated
efforts of many a past cricketer, in setting a firm platform under
trying conditions for the present day cricketers to display their
talents, go unrecognised, at times of highlighting our recent
achievements. Hence it was a fitting tribute to the great efforts
made by these past cricketers in the decades gone by, through whose
efforts a firm foundation for today's cricketer to perform well had
been laid down, that a key stalwart of the gone-by era, Michael
Tissera, a great cricketing gentleman and the finest cricket captain
produced by Sri Lanka, was invited to inaugurate this launch
officially.
The number and miscellany of books on cricket provide astonishment to
many, but "The Golden Era of Sri Lankan Cricket" written by a highly
improbable author is undeniably quite different. It is the story,
written with unusual charm and distinction, of the team that radiated
brilliance in overs limited cricket and blossomed to establish itself
as a "champion team", starting around the World Cup '96 and extending
immediately beyond that, exceeding many expectations. All the drama,
controversy, excitement and achievement of the 14 tournaments that
followed the World Cup 1996, enveloping 47 one-day internationals,
are represented in detail most eloquently. Sri Lanka's dominance in
the one-day arena during this period of time is captured in this book
not only in words, but also in well over 25 tabulated figures as well
as photographs, both in colour and black & white, exceeding 40 in
number, in an easy to read presentation style. A founder member and
the former general secretary of the Association of Cricket Umpires &
Scorers England, Leslie Cheeseman BEM, has written the Preface. The
book, which contains 242 pages of (A-4) size and printed on thick art
paper, costs Rs. 650 per copy.
Ajith C. S. Perera combines different talents, academically and
professionally, a strange mix of cricket and chemistry. He is a B.Sc.
(Hons.), M.Sc. graduate, a Chartered Chemist by profession, and a
fellow of three prestigious professional bodies, who has acquired
over 12 years of senior managerial experience with two multinational
pharmaceutical companies. His cricketing scoreboard indicates an
impressive innings, still "Not Out", playing a very straight bat to
life's googlies, in spite of now being confined to a life on a wheel
chair in the prime of his youth.
Besides playing Division-One tournament cricket (1973-1977), his
professional achievements in the cricketing sphere has extended to
many an avenue in addition to being a test-match panel first class
umpire with over 20 years of experience. Ajith is also a qualified
umpire (1985), scorer (1987) and a competent training instructor
(1990) of the prestigious cricketing body ACU & S England who has
gained much needed practical experience at a higher level and
exposure to professional competitive cricket in England, Lancashire
in particular.
S. Skandakumar, a much respected cricketing personality and a former
secretary of the Sri Lanka Cricket Board, in his speech made a richly
deserved tribute to the author. It was mentioned that with his
relentless commitment to cricket, a more prosperous professional
career was sacrificed, to contribute in his usual silent yet
effective manner towards the technical upliftment of the needs of the
game the world over, that has sadly gone unnoticed and unrecognised.
He is respected for his analytical skills, and his technical
knowledge of the game, its Laws and Regulations in particular. Both
on and off the field for well over two decades, there has never been
a hint of bias in him.
Ajith Perera's painstaking efforts in writing this book, was very
correctly stressed as "a worthy contribution to Sri Lankan Cricket
that must receive every possible encouragement and assistance." It is
a book that has been compiled with much foresight, overcoming added
hardship, with careful research, an analytical approach and
meticulous planning. Michael Tissera, delivering the keynote address,
expressed that this book is an impressive attempt to keep alive for
posterity, not only outstanding achievements in great detail, but
also the fabulous manner of achieving these feats. He further
remarked that "The meticulous details found in this book, its
arrangement, the flow of thought and even the selection of font type
and size which lends to easy reading, are true indications of Ajith's
commitment to any endeavour he undertakes."
In his introduction to the book, Ajith Perera indicated that a
welcome feature here is a separate chapter that narrates the
fascinating story of the emergence, establishment and progress of the
one-day cricket as a financial elixir to the traditional game. The
book also includes personal opinions of the author on strategic
aspects to remain at the top, followed by two more chapters providing
useful information too the reader on World Cup 1999 as well. Every
single copy purchased Ajith remarked, "would also make you a
contributor to three worthy charities, with the contribution towards
making available an MRI Scanning Facility at key government
hospitals, being the most significant." He further said "when the
need arose for my own initial diagnosis after that very unfortunate
accident in 1992 November, its non-availability here had a great
adverse impact on me, which left me a Paraplegic in the prime of my
youth."
In a very firm and clear manner, Ajith also brought to the notice of
the media and all present, the added hardships a person with physical
impairments, confined to a wheel chair, faces in our country. It is a
mistake to believe that one can only contribute to the society in the
active physical sense. However, this ever-increasing group of people
always goes unnoticed and discriminated, resulting mainly from
society-created barriers, for which nothing effective has yet been
done, even in taking the vital first steps in the proper direction.
Ajith Perera, like many others totally confined to a wheel-chair in
this country, in spite of being a professional, finds it hard to
attract the attention of those reputed giants in business and in the
cricketing world here, not only to generate sales for his dedicated
endeavours on behalf of the Sri Lankan cricket he is so fond of, but
also to make use of his technical expertise and all-round experience
to contribute effectively, for the society we live in.
Source :: The Daily News (https://www.lanka.net/lakehouse/)