DILSHAN & DILSHAN TO OPEN IN WT20 FOR SRI LANKA

Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardena has hinted few changes in the batting order in an interview with Sri Lankan newspaper - Divaina.

"Probably I will have to bat in the middle order. Dilshan Munaweera is in a great form, so he deserves that opportunity I think. And few other youngsters are also in the team. They need to be settled in their positions."

So according to Mahela, T.M. Dilshan & Dilshan Munaweera will open the innings for Sri Lanka in the World T20 & skipper is ready to give up his position for the sake of team (Country) and youngsters.

Munaweera has been the highest run getter in recently ended SLPL with 212 runs at 35.33. His strike rate of 144.21 is the highest among top 5 run getters. He was the best batsman in Inter-Provincial - 4 day tournament, best batsman & man of the series in U23 - 2 day tournament and best batsman in U23 - One Day tournament.

     

Dilshan with his little Angel

Tillakaratne Dilshan is one of the most exciting batsmen in the game today. He is technically sound, but, much like Virender Sehwag, he uses the defensive option only as a last resort, after all the attacking alternatives have been explored. He loves to make room and thrash the ball through the off side, but the stroke that bears his signature more than any other is the one he developed for the 2009 ICC World Twenty20 - the eponymously named "Dilscoop" shot over his head, which confounded bowlers and experts alike.

In fact, 2009 was a watershed year in his career, and a huge factor was his move up the batting order to open the innings in all three forms of the game. It was a move that proved his making, as he exploited attacking fields and amassed huge scores in all formats: he scored 11 international hundreds in the year, and won the World Twenty20 Player of the Series prize.

Dilshan's abundant talent was never in doubt from the moment he made his debut, but he went through several early troughs, most notably when he was dropped from 2001 to 2003. Having burst onto the international scene with an unbeaten 163 against Zimbabwe in his first series in November 1999, Dilshan's career remained largely unfulfilled until he cemented his place as one of the most destructive openers in the modern era. Add his electric fielding, especially at backward point, and his underrated offspin, and Dilshan is a quality package. In 2011 he was named Sri Lanka's captain, after the resignation of Kumar Sangakkara, but his reign lasted less than a year, with Mahela Jayawardene replacing him after Sri Lanka's disastrous tour to South Africa in 2011-12. 

Dilshan with his angel 

SLPL Official Logos

Sri Lanka Premier League (SLPL) last evening unveiled its logo in a carnival of passion for cricket at an event held at the Cinnamon Grand Hotel in Colombo.   The organizers of the event said accordingly, in 25 days or even before, cricket fever is certain to sweep the country, dwarfing all other activities.  This event is expected to give a major fillip to the country’s tourism, leisure and entertainment industry.

The 24-game contest, featuring seven teams named after selected provinces of the country and involving 112 local and 56 global players, will begin on 10 August with a mega ceremony. The matches will be played in Colombo and Pallekelle.

Dharmadasa said that the SLPL would be a big boost for Under 21 cricketers, Team players, National Squad members and top stars locally as well as globally would get an opportunity to play competitive cricket with some of the world’s best names in the Twenty 20 game.

The former Sri Lankan skipper Kumar Sangakkara said this is a great opportunity to promote Sri Lankan players and uplift Sri Lankan cricket while upholding the MCC spirit of cricket. He said that although a lot of foreign stars will feature in the tournament, Sri Lankan cricket will take center stage. He said that hopefully SLPL will be a stepping stone for a feast of talented cricketers thus creating healthy competition among them in order to have a top notched pool to choose from.  

Organizers of the tournament said that the SLPL has thus far been a success by attracting $ 30 million in bids for the seven provincial franchises for seven years with an average price of US$ 4.33 million each. The seven franchises and their icon players are Basnahira (Western) Province – Tillakaratne Dilshan; Kandurata (Central) Province – Kumar Sangakkara, Nagenahira (Eastern) Province –  Angelo Matthews; Ruhuna (Southern) Province –  Lasith Malinga; Uthura (Northern) Province – Muttiah Muralitharan; Uva (South East) Province  –  Chris Gayle and Wayamba (North West) Province – Mahela Jayawardena. (niz)