| Cricket in Sri Lanka | |
|---|---|
| Country | Sri Lanka |
| Governing body | Sri Lanka Cricket |
| National team(s) | Sri Lanka |
| First played | 1800 |
National competitions | |
Club competitions | |
International competitions | |
Cricket is the most popular sport in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka is one of the twelve nations that take part in Test cricket and one of the six nations that has won a cricket World Cup. Cricket is played at professional, semi-professional and recreational levels in the country and international cricket matches are watched with interest by a large proportion of the population.
Sri Lanka (then called Ceylon) was occupied by the British in 1796 and became a British colony in 1815. As in all places that the British arrived in large numbers, cricket soon followed and it is reasonable to assume that the game was first played on the island by 1800. The earliest definite mention of cricket in Ceylon was a report in the Colombo Journal on 5 September 1832 which called for the formation of a cricket club. The Colombo Cricket Club was formed soon afterwards and matches began in November 1832. Since then, the sport has grown domestically with major events such as the Premier Trophy (dating from 1938) and the Premier Limited Overs Tournament (starting 1988–89). Sri Lanka's one day international debut came in the 1975 Cricket World Cup. The country was awarded Test cricket status by the International Cricket Council in 1981.
Sri Lanka Cricket, formerly the Board for Cricket Control in Sri Lanka (BCCSL), is the controlling body for cricket in Sri Lanka. It operates the Sri Lankan cricket team, Sri Lanka A cricket team, Sri Lankan women's cricket team and first-class cricket within Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka is a full member of the International Cricket Council and the Asian Cricket Council. Sri Lanka co-hosted the 1996 Cricket World Cup and the 2011 Cricket World Cup.
Sri Lanka Cricket oversees the progress and handling of the major domestic competitions: the First-class tournaments – SLC Tier A and B Premier Trophy, the List A tournament – Premier Limited Overs Tournament and the Twenty20 competition – SLC Twenty20 Tournament, in which the following first-class teams may take part:
Several competitions have been arranged where teams were formed out of each of the major provinces, independent to the above clubs:
The Sri Lankan cricket team is the national cricket team of Sri Lanka. The team first played One day international cricket in the 1975 Cricket World Cup and were later awarded Test status in 1981, which made Sri Lanka the eighth Test cricket playing nation.
The Sri Lankan team transformed themselves from the underdog status to a leading cricketing nation during the 1990s. Sri Lanka currently holds the record for the highest Team total in Test Cricket [1]
Sri Lanka have won the Cricket World Cup in 1996, [2] the ICC Champions Trophy in 2002 (Co-champions with India), [3] the ICC World Twenty20 in 2014. [4]
They are also Six times champions of Asia Cup in 1986, 1997, 2004, 2008, 2014 & 2022 and have been runners up in the 2007 Cricket World Cup, 2011 Cricket World Cup, 2009 ICC World Twenty20 and 2012 ICC World Twenty20.
The Sri Lankan women's cricket team is the team that represents Sri Lanka in international women's cricket matches. Sri Lankan women's cricket team's international debut came in 1997 with a three match ODI series against the Netherlands. [5] Since then, the team has represented Sri Lanka in international women's cricket tournaments.
Graeme Fredrick Labrooy is a former Sri Lankan cricketer who played in nine Tests and 44 ODIs from 1986 to 1992. He was the chairman of selectors for the national team and currently serves as an international match referee. His younger brother Wendell Labrooy is also a first-class cricketer and match referee. Labrooy holds the unique distinction of never playing any of his nine test matches at home. He had modelled his text book bowling action on Richard Hadlee and he was regarded as a huge fan of Hadlee.
The Major League Tournament is the main domestic first-class cricket competition in Sri Lanka. It was established in 1938 and has existed under a number of different names. Matches before the 1988–89 season are not considered first-class. Relaunched as the Lakspray Trophy in 1988–89, it was renamed as the P. Saravanamuttu Trophy in 1990–91 and as the Premier Championship in 1998–99. There was a change of format in 2015–16 when it became the Premier League Tournament which was split into Tiers A and B the following year.
Tisse Appuhamilage Milinda Siriwardana, commonly as Milinda Siriwardana is a professional Sri Lankan cricketer, who plays for limited over formats. He is a left-hand batsman and a left-arm spinner. He is playing Test, ODI, T20I for Sri Lanka and First class and List A in domestic arena. He studied at the Kalutara Vidyalaya. He usually fields at short cover.
Pasqual Handi Kamindu Dilanka Mendis, popularly as Kamindu Mendis, is a professional Sri Lankan cricketer who plays for the national team, and for Colombo Cricket Club in domestic cricket. He is an ambidextrous bowler and has bowled both right and left-arm deliveries during the same over. He made his international debut for the Sri Lanka cricket team in October 2018.
In team sports, the term home advantage – also called home ground, home field, home court, or home ice advantage – describes the benefit that the home team is said to gain over the visiting team. This benefit has been attributed to psychological effects supporting fans have on the competitors or referees; to psychological or physiological advantages of playing near home in familiar; to the disadvantages away teams suffer from changing time zones or climates, or from the rigors of travel; and, in some sports, to specific rules that favor the home team directly or indirectly.
Pathum Nissanka Silva is a professional Lankan cricketer who plays for Sri Lanka in all three formats of the game. He made his international debut for the Sri Lanka cricket team in March 2021 and currently slotted as the permanent opening batsman.
Muthuthanthirige Nuwanidu Keshawa Fernando is a Sri Lankan cricketer. He made his first-class debut for Panadura Sports Club in the 2016–17 Premier League Tournament on 28 December 2016.
The 2017–18 SLC Twenty20 Tournament was a Twenty20 cricket tournament that was held in Sri Lanka. It was played between domestic teams in Sri Lanka, with the tournament starting on 24 February 2018 and concluding on 8 March 2018. The matches were used as preparation for the 2018 Nidahas Trophy.
The 2017–18 Premier Limited Overs Tournament was a List A cricket competition that took place in Sri Lanka. It was the seventeenth edition of the Premier Limited Overs Tournament, and the first since the 2015–16 edition, after the 2016–17 tournament was cancelled following a legal challenge and replaced by the 2016–17 Districts One Day Tournament. The tournament started on 9 March 2018 and finished on 25 March 2018. Rain affected the first few days of fixtures, with several games ending as a no result.
The 2018–19 SLC Twenty20 Tournament was a Twenty20 cricket tournament that was held in Sri Lanka. It was played between twenty-four domestic teams in Sri Lanka, with the tournament running from 15 to 27 February 2019. Nondescripts Cricket Club were the defending champions.
Perumapperuma Arachchige Kaveesha Praveen Jayawickrama, popularly as Praveen Jayawickrama, is a professional Sri Lankan cricketer who plays for the national team in all three formats. He made his international debut for the Sri Lanka cricket team in April 2021.
The 2018–19 Premier Limited Overs Tournament was a List A cricket competition that took place in Sri Lanka. It was the eighteenth edition of the Premier Limited Overs Tournament. The tournament ran from 4 to 19 March 2019. Sinhalese Sports Club were the defending champions.
The 2019–20 Invitation Limited Over Tournament was a List A cricket competition that took place in Sri Lanka. It ran from 14 to 31 December 2019, with twenty-five teams taking part. It was the first edition of the Invitation Limited Over Tournament, replacing the Premier Limited Overs Tournament, after Sri Lanka Cricket failed to approve the latter due to delays in their domestic cricket structure. Sinhalese Sports Club won the last edition of the Premier Limited Overs Tournament.
The 2019–20 SLC Twenty20 Tournament was a Twenty20 cricket tournament that was held in Sri Lanka. It was played between twenty-six domestic teams in Sri Lanka, with the tournament running from 4 to 21 January 2020. Moors Sports Club were the defending champions.
The 2017–18 Premier League Tournament Tier B was the second division of the 30th season of first-class cricket in Sri Lanka's Premier Trophy. The tournament was contested by nine teams, starting on 15 December 2017 and concluding on 18 February 2018.
The 2019–20 Premier League Tournament Tier B is the second division of the 32nd season of first-class cricket in Sri Lanka's Premier Trophy. The tournament started on 31 January and was originally scheduled to conclude on 11 April 2020.
The 2020–21 SLC Twenty20 Tournament was a Twenty20 cricket tournament that was held in Sri Lanka. It took place from 4 to 20 March 2021. Colombo Cricket Club were the defending champions. A total of 26 teams took part in the tournament, split into four groups, with 79 matches being played.
The 2020–21 Major Clubs Limited Over Tournament was a List A cricket competition that took place in Sri Lanka. It ran from 24 March to 11 April 2021, with twenty-six teams taking part. Chilaw Marians Cricket Club were the defending champions, winning the 2019–20 Invitation Limited Over Tournament.
The 2021–22 Major Clubs Limited Over Tournament was a List A cricket competition that took place in Sri Lanka. It ran from 27 October to 30 November 2021, with twenty-six teams taking part. Eight overseas cricketers played in the tournament. Nondescripts Cricket Club were the defending champions, having won the previous year's tournament.
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