Why cricket rules in Sri Lanka
In the National , Paul Radley finds out how cricket overtook rugby for popularity in Sri Lanka after their cricket team won the 1996 World Cup, and says it is as much from a lack of other options as obsession with the game itself that cricket is
Dustin Silgardo
25-Feb-2013
In the National, Paul Radley finds out how cricket overtook rugby for popularity in Sri Lanka after their cricket team won the 1996 World Cup, and says it is as much from a lack of other options as obsession with the game itself that cricket is the subcontinent's premier sport.
"Prior to winning the World Cup, rugby was more popular than cricket in Sri Lanka," Rohan Gunaratne, the executive director of the Sri Lankan RFU, said. "Now cricket is on the TV, which wasn't the case earlier, not on a regular basis, anyway. Because of that, cricket has reached the rural areas and everyone knows about it. In cricket, they are always playing within the top five sides. In rugby, we can't reach that level."
Dustin Silgardo is a former sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo