Winning World Cup Opens New Avenues For Sri Lanka (20 Apr 1996)

20 April 1996

Winning World Cup opens new avenues

10 potential cricketers to play in English Leagues

By Sa`adi Thawfeeq

If all goes well, ten potential Sri Lankan cricketers between the ages of 19 and 21 years will sign up contracts to play for clubs in the English leagues this summer.

Negotiations to obtain contracts for these players took place shortly after Sussex Under 20 team made a tour of Sri Lanka last December. The officials who accompanied the team were so impressed with the local talent that was available in Sri Lanka they spread the word around on their return home to the local clubs who were looking to sign up players for the 1996 and 1997 seasons.

Mick Verney, vice president of the English Schools Cricket Association also happened to be in Sri Lanka at the time, and he along with local sports tour promoter Errol Seneviratne travelled to places like Kandy, Galle, Matara and Badulla hunting for talent.

The ten cricketers - six of whom were selected by Sussex are: Suranga Wijenayake (Prince of Wales), J.A. Mahindaratne (BRC), Mahela Jayawardena (Nalanda), Bradman Ediriweera (CCC), Nimesh Perera (St. Sebastian`s), Suranjith Silva (SSC), Tilan Samaraweera (Ananda), Hemantha Boteju (Thurstan), Sajeewa Silva (Sebastianites) and Himal Perera (SSC).

These players will appear for clubs like Guildford CC, Avorians CC (in the Surrey league), Mablethorpe CC (in Lincolnshire league), Cove CC (Thames Valley, Surrey league), and also for clubs in the Yorkshire and Middlesex leagues.

Apart from representing the club, the players will be given free accommodation and food and also receive coaching when not playing. The Sri Lanka Cricket Board will have to bear the cost of airfare for the 10 players, and also arrange for their respective visas.

This proposal for the development of young cricketers was put forward by Seneviratne to the Sri Lanka Cricket Foundation and the Sri Lanka Cricket Board, who have accepted it and are going ahead with the arrangements.

"This is a golden opportunity for our young talent to gain valuable experience in England. We have decided to go through with this scheme to develop young cricketers,`` said Sri Lanka Cricket Board president Upali Dharmadasa.

"We have appointed Lalith Kaluperuma and Hemal Mendis to put the selected cricketers through a medical and fitness test before they are sent to England,`` said Dharmadasa, who has received the greenlight from the ExCo of the Cricket Board to pursue this scheme.

"This is a tremendous boost for our young cricketers because the selected lot is probably the best Sri Lanka has to offer for the future,`` said Seneviratne, a former cricket umpire who was responsible for arranging the Sussex under 24 tour to Sri Lanka last year.

"Winning the World Cup has opened new avenues for Sri Lanka cricket. A lot of English clubs are looking to sign up Sri Lankan players,`` he said.

Negotiations with the clubs got delayed during the World Cup tournament, which resulted in many clubs sending desperate messages to Sri Lanka inquiring whether the players were available. However, the Sri Lanka Cricket Board through Verney has got everything moving and hopefully the deal would come through without any hassles to enable these players gain the necessary exposure in English conditions which would enhance their prospects of playing for their country in the near future.

Source :: Daily News (http.//www.lanka.net)