To enhance their cricketing skills Sri Lanka U-19 cricketers asked to play in Major L/O club tournament

By Sa’adi Thawfeeq

Sri Lanka’s Under-19 cricketers, who pulled off a record 5-0 series whitewash against reigning Under-19 World

Opening the batting with Chamindu Wickramasinghe was one option that has paid off for Sri Lanka U-19

Cup champions Bangladesh in the recently concluded five-match ODI series, have been asked to go and play club cricket to enhance their skills further.

“I have asked everyone to go and play club cricket for the next couple of weeks. It’s very important for them to play club cricket because that is one notch higher than Under-19. I have released all 26 players who formed the squad for the ODI series,” said Sri Lanka Under-19 Coach Avishka Gunawardene.

Sri Lanka’s next Under-19 ODI series is in the middle of next month when they host England Under-19 for five matches.

“As I have released them to play club cricket, I don’t think they need to go into a bubble very early. However, with the three-day isolations, and all that, at least 10-12 days prior to the start of the series we will have to go into a bubble. It will be just after the second week of November,” Gunawardene said.

The SLC Major inter-club Limited Over tournament commenced on Wednesday with the participation of 26 clubs and will go on till 28 November.

Whether Sri Lanka will go with the same squad of 26 players or make any changes for the England series, Gunawardene said he will need to sit and discuss with the national selectors.

“With the injury concerns and all that we need to look at another few other options, but it will be from the 75-member squad picked in Kandy. I will revisit that 75 and see what options I have and get the recommendations of the selectors also.”

Gunawardene said that they were still experimenting with combinations ahead of the 2022 Under-19 World Cup in the Caribbean in January. One of them that went right for Sri Lanka was promoting Chamindu Wickramasinghe to open the batting in the fifth ODI. Wickramasinghe had opened the bowling in the first two ODIs and batted at no. 8 before he suffered an injury. He returned for the fifth and final ODI, and promoted to open the batting, scored the only century of the series.   

“He is a fast-bowling all-rounder who has opened the batting for his school (St. Anthony’s College, Katugastota), we knew he was capable,” said Gunawardene. 

“When you have a chat with him, he obviously prefers fast-bowling. We tried him out at the top whether we can use him to go out there and get quick runs for us in the first 10-12 overs. He is strong and he is someone who can easily clear the field. 

“That was another option we were looking at and it paid off very well. I need him as an all-rounder in the team not purely as a batsman but to bowl a few overs as well. He proved that he is the best opener we had in the series. Keeping that option in mind, we need to look at another opening option.”

Sri Lanka tried out four openers in the first four ODI without much success - Sadeesh Jayawardena, Jeevaka Shashen, Harindu Jayasekera and Ryan Fernando.

“I am quite happy with the spin department and fast bowling all-rounders but in terms of the wicket-keeping side of it we need to improve a little bit more. It is one aspect we need looking into. We have still not settled down to a combination because we need to keep an open eye about different combinations moving forward,” Gunawardene said. 

“Before the start of the series I said that I needed to look at the players in the middle and I have pretty much seen it, but I am still concerned.”