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Dilshan Madushanka creates history after becoming the most expensive buy at LPL Auction

Published

3 years ago

June 15, 2023

Editor

Left-arm paceman Dilshan Madushanka created history when he was sold as the highest bid for Jaffna Kings at the inaugural Lanka Premier League players Auction staged at Shangri-la hotel, yesterday.

An intense bidding war between Jaffna Kings and Galle Titans was seen for Dilshan Madushanka, with both teams bidding and counterbidding each. But it was clear that the three-time Champions Jaffna Kings wanted the 22-year-old at any cost and they succeeded when they eventually bought Madushanka for whopping 92,000 Dollars.

Among the other highlights picks at Auction was, Dananjaya de Silva who was the first player to be sold on the day for Dambulla Aura for 76,000 Dollars.

Dashing batter Charith Asalanka was also clearly in demand as a bidding war broke out for him as well. In the end, the star player was sold to Jaffna Kings for 80,000 Dollars.

The Auction, which had 51 rounds, focused on multiple talent options, such as batters, all-rounders, fast and spin bowlers, and wicketkeepers, with different segments for each criterion, such as capped batters, uncapped batters, etc.

Among the unsold list were some of the key players who are having experience in franchise cricket Tamim Iqbal (Bangladesh ), Paul Stirling (Ireland), Najibullah Zadran (Afghanistan), Carlos Brathwaite (West Indies), Sikandar Raza (Zimbabwe), Imad Wasim (Pakistan), Mushfiqar Rahman and Litton Das (Bangladesh), Ben Mcdermott( Australia), Tim Serfit( New Zealand), Azam Khan ( Australia), Andrew Tye (Australia), Fazalhaq Farooqi (Afghanistan), Jasen Behrandorff (Australia), Zahir Khan (India), Imran Thahir (Pakistan) were in the unsold foreign players list while Sri test captain Dimuth Karunaratne, Leg spinner Prabath Jayasuriya, Ramesh Mendis and Shehan Jayasuriya who based in USA also among the unsold list.

The Five franchises were allowed to spend $500,000 at the auction.

Following are the players sold for five franchise teams yesterday.

Jaffna Kings:

Nishan Madushka (Sri Lanka) – US$ 10,000, Asanka Manoj (Sri Lanka) – US$ 5000, Theesan Vithusan (Sri Lanka) – US$ 5000, Vijayakanth Viyaskanth (Sri Lanka) – US$ 18,000, Pathum Kumara (Sri Lanka) – US$ 5000, Shoaib Malik (Pakistan) – US$ 50,000, Dunith Wellalage (Sri Lanka) – US$ 56,000, Charith Asalanka (Sri Lanka) – US$ 80,000, Asitha Fernando (Sri Lanka) – US$ 28,000, Hardus Viljoen (South Africa) – US$ 30,000, Nuwan Thushara (Sri Lanka) – US $ 30,000

B- Love Kandy

Kamindu Mendis (Sri Lanka) – US$ 60,000, Asif Ali (Pakistan) – US$ 30,000, Navod Paranavithana (Sri Lanka) – US$ 5,000, Mohammad Haris (Pakistan) – US$ 20,000, Ashen Bandara (Sri Lanka) – US$ 40,000, Sahan Arachchige (Sri Lanka) – US$ 28,000, Dushmantha Chameera (Sri Lanka) – US$ 70,000, Mohammad Hasnain (Pakistan) – US$ 34,000, Dinesh Chandimal (Sri Lanka) – US$ 72,000, Isuru Udana (Sri Lanka) – US$ 40,000, Chathuranga de Silva (Sri Lanka) – US$ 10,000, Nuwan Pradeep (Sri Lanka) – US$ 20,000, Lahiru Madushanka (Sri Lanka) – US $ 26,000.

Galle Titans

Sohan De Livera (Sri Lanka) – US$ 5,000, Mohammad Shiraz (Sri Lanka) – US$ 5000, Shevon Daniel (Sri Lanka) – US$ 22,000, Pasidu Sooriyabandara (Sri Lanka) – US$ 5,000, Minod Bhanuka (Sri Lanka) – US$ 20,000, Mohammad Mithun (Bangladesh) – US$ 20,000, Ben Cutting (Australia) – US$ 30,000, Ashan Priyanjana (Sri Lanka) – US$ 20,000, Sohan De Livera (Sri Lanka) – US$ 5,000, Lasith Croospulle (Sri Lanka) – US$ 20,000, Lahiru Kumara (Sri Lanka) – US$ 42,000, Seekuge Prasanna (Sri Lanka) – US$ 15,000, Kasun Rajitha (Sri Lanka) – US$ 40,000

Colombo Strikers

Lahiru Udara (Sri Lanka) – US$ 10,000, Dhananjaya Lakshan (Sri Lanka) – US$ 20,000, Angelo Perera (Sri Lanka) – US$ 20,000, Jeffrey Vandersay (Sri Lanka) – US$ 20,000, Lorcan Tucker (Ireland) – US$ 10,000, Iftikhar Ahmad (Pakistan) – US$ 50,000, Nuwanidu Fernabdo (Sri Lanka) – US$ 20,000, Shashika Dulshan (Sri Lanka) – US$ 6500, Eshan Malinga (Sri Lanka) – US$ 5000, Lahiru Udara (Sri Lanka) – US$ 10,000, Movin Subasinghe (Sri Lanka) – US$ 10,000, Nipun Dananjaya (Sri Lanka) – US$ 5000, Lakshan Sandakan (Sri Lanka) – US$ 30,000, Wahab Riaz (Pakistan) – US$ 40,000, Niroshan Dickwella (Sri Lanka) – US$ 44,000, Pathum Nissanka (Sri Lanka) – US$ 40,000.

Dambulla Aura

Pramod Madushan (Sri Lanka) – US$ 34,000, Dushan Hemantha (Sri Lanka) – US$ 20,000, Janith Liyanage (Sri Lanka) – US$ 10,000, Sachitha Jayathilaka (Sri Lanka) – US$ 5,000, Noor Ahmad (Afghanistan) – US$ 50,000, Binura Fernando (Sri Lanka) – US$ 76,000, Sadeera Samarawickrama (Sri Lanka) – US$ 68,000, Hayden Kerr (Australia) – US$ 20,000, Kusal Janith Perera (Sri Lanka) – US$ 40,000, Dhananjaya De Silva (Sri Lanka) – US$ 76,000, Lakshna Edirisinghe (Sri Lanka) – US$ 5,000, Shahnawaz Dahani (Pakistan) – US$ 20,000.

Dilshan Madushanka LPL වෙන්දේසියේ මිල අධිකම මිලදී ගැනීම බවට පත්වේ.

වමත් වේගපන්දු යවන ඩිල්ෂාන් මධුශංක ඊයේ ෂැංග්‍රිලා හෝටලයේ පැවැති මංගල ලංකා ප්‍රිමියර් ලීග් ක්‍රීඩක වෙන්දේසියේදී යාපනය කිංග්ස් වෙනුවෙන් වැඩිම ලංසුවකට ඉතිහාසගත අලෙවි විය.

ජැෆ්නා කිංග්ස් සහ ගාලු ටයිටන්ස් අතර ඩිල්ෂාන් මධුශංඛ වෙනුවෙන් දැඩි ලංසු තැබීමේ සටනක් දක්නට ලැබුණු අතර කණ්ඩායම් දෙකම එක් එක් ලංසු ඉදිරිපත් කරමින් ප්‍රති-ලංසු ඉදිරිපත් කළහ. එහෙත් තුන් වතාවක් ශූරයන් වූ යාපනය කිංග්ස් කණ්ඩායමට 22 හැවිරිදි තරුණයා අවශ්‍ය වූ බව පැහැදිලි වූ අතර අවසානයේ ඔවුන් ඩොලර් 92,000 කට මධුශංක මිලදී ගත් විට ඔවුන් සාර්ථක විය.

වෙන්දේසියේ අනෙකුත් විශේෂ තේරීම් අතර, දඹුල්ල ඕරා වෙනුවෙන් ඩොලර් 76,000 කට අලෙවි වූ පළමු ක්‍රීඩකයා වූයේ ධනංජය ද සිල්වාය.

දඩබ්බර පිතිකරු චරිත් අසලංකටද ලංසු තැබීමේ තරඟයක් ඇති වූ බැවින් ඔහුටද ඉල්ලුමක් ඇති විය. අවසානයේ මෙම තරු ක්‍රීඩකයා ජැෆ්නා කිංග්ස් වෙත ඩොලර් 80,000 කට අලෙවි විය.

පිතිකරුවන්, තුන් ඉරියව් ක්‍රීඩකයින්, වේග සහ දඟ පන්දු යවන්නන් සහ කඩුලු රකින්නන් කෙරෙහි අවධානය යොමු කරමින් වට 51 කින් සමන්විත වූ වෙන්දේසිය, ජාත්‍යන්තර වරම් හිමි හා නොහිමි ක්‍රිඩකයන් යනාදී එක් එක් නිර්ණායක සඳහා විවිධ කාණ්ඩ සමඟින් මෙවර ලංසු තැබීම ආරම්භ විය.

වෙන්දේසියේදී කණ්ඩායම් පහට ඩොලර් 500,000ක් වැය කිරීමට අවසර ලැබිණි.

ඊයේ දිනයේදී ෆ්‍රැන්චයිස් කණ්ඩායම් පහක් සඳහා අලෙවි වූ ක්‍රීඩකයින් පහත දැක්වේ.

Jaffna Kings:

B- Love Kandy

Galle Titans

Colombo Strikers

Dambulla Aura

Cricket

Sri Lanka Announce Dasun Shanaka-Led Squad for Pakistan T20 Series

Published

4 days ago

January 6, 2026

Editor

Sri Lanka have announced a strong and well-balanced squad led by Dasun Shanaka for the upcoming three-match T20 International series against Pakistan, which is set to begin tomorrow in Dambulla.

The selection reflects a blend of experience and emerging talent, as the selectors look to combine stability with attacking intent in the shortest format. Shanaka will continue to lead the side, with his leadership, calm decision-making, and power-hitting expected to play a central role in Sri Lanka’s campaign.

The batting unit features depth and versatility. Pathum Nissanka and Kamil Mishara provide options at the top of the order, while Kusal Mendis and Kusal Perera bring proven international experience and match-winning ability to the middle order. Dhananjaya de Silva and Charith Asalanka add further flexibility, offering the ability to adapt their roles according to match situations.

Sri Lanka’s all-round strength remains a key asset, with Wanindu Hasaranga, Kamindu Mendis, Dunith Wellalage, and Shanaka himself providing balance to the side. Hasaranga, in particular, is expected to play a decisive role with both bat and ball, especially during the middle overs.

The bowling attack offers a strong mix of spin and pace. Maheesh Theekshana’s variations will be vital on home surfaces, supported by Dushan Hemantha and Wellalage. The pace department is bolstered by the presence of Dushmantha Chameera, Matheesha Pathirana, Nuwan Thushara, Eshan Malinga, and Traveen Mathew, giving Sri Lanka a range of options in terms of speed, movement, and death-over execution.

Janith Liyanage provides additional batting cover, while the overall squad depth allows the team flexibility to rotate players and manage workloads across the series.

With home advantage on their side, Sri Lanka will be aiming to make a strong start and build momentum against a competitive Pakistan side as preparations continue for future international assignments.

Sri Lanka T20 Squad vs Pakistan

Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Kusal Mendis, Kusal Perera, Dhananjaya de Silva, Charith Asalanka, Dasun Shanaka (Captain), Janith Liyanage, Kamindu Mendis, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dunith Wellalage, Maheesh Theekshana, Dushan Hemantha, Traveen Mathew, Dushmantha Chameera, Matheesha Pathirana, Nuwan Thushara, Eshan Maling

Cricket

Sanath Jayasuriya to Step Down as Sri Lanka Head Coach After T20 World Cup 2026

Published

5 days ago

January 5, 2026

Editor

Sri Lanka head coach Sanath Jayasuriya has confirmed that he will step down from his role following the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, bringing clarity to ongoing speculation surrounding his future with the national team.

Although Jayasuriya’s current contract with Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) extends beyond the World Cup, multiple media reports indicate that he has already taken a personal decision not to continue in the role after the tournament.

Coaching Journey and Key Milestones

Jayasuriya’s tenure as national head coach began in July 2024, when he was appointed interim head coach ahead of a demanding home series against India. That appointment proved pivotal, as Sri Lanka went on to record a historic ODI series victory over India, their first in several decades. The result prompted Sri Lanka Cricket to confirm Jayasuriya as full-time head coach later that year.

Prior to taking over the national side, Jayasuriya had been involved with Sri Lanka Cricket as a consultant at the National High Performance Centre since December 2023, contributing to player development and long-term planning.

Record and Performance Overview

Under Jayasuriya’s leadership, Sri Lanka have played 60 international matches across all three formats, registering 29 wins and 29 losses, with two no results. The numbers reflect a transitional phase for the team, marked by rebuilding, experimentation, and gradual progress rather than consistent dominance.

While the team has shown improvement in Tests and ODIs, Jayasuriya has acknowledged that T20 cricket remains an area requiring further refinement, particularly in maintaining batting momentum and executing disciplined bowling during decisive phases of matches.

Focus on World Cup Preparation

Looking ahead, Jayasuriya has highlighted upcoming home series against Pakistan and England as crucial preparation opportunities ahead of the T20 World Cup. He believes these contests will allow Sri Lanka to finalise player combinations, sharpen tactical decision-making, and test performances under pressure in familiar conditions.

Jayasuriya’s connection with Sri Lanka’s World Cup success is deeply rooted. He was Player of the Tournament during Sri Lanka’s iconic 1996 ODI World Cup victory and later served as Chairman of Selectors when the national team lifted the 2014 T20 World Cup. Now, he is aiming to contribute to a potential third World Cup triumph, this time from the coach’s chair.

SLC Response and Future Outlook

Sri Lanka Cricket Chairman Shammi Silva has publicly expressed satisfaction with Jayasuriya’s work, praising his hands-on coaching approach and close engagement with players. Speaking at a recent media briefing, Silva stated that formal discussions regarding Jayasuriya’s future will take place after the T20 World Cup, leaving open the possibility of an extension should circumstances permit.

In a separate development, Silva also confirmed that Sri Lanka Cricket plans to appoint a foreign head coach for the national women’s team, marking a shift from the current setup under local coach Rumesh Ratnayake. The move forms part of a broader strategy to further professionalise and strengthen the women’s cricket programme.

As Sri Lanka build toward the 2026 T20 World Cup on home soil, Jayasuriya’s remaining tenure is expected to focus on consolidation, clarity, and competitive readiness — with his legacy to be assessed once the global tournament concludes.

Cricket

Harmanpreet Leads from the Front as India Women Seal 5–0 Clean Sweep Over Sri Lanka

Published

1 week ago

December 31, 2025

Editor

India Women capped off a dominant tour with another composed performance, defeating Sri Lanka Women by 15 runs in the fifth and final T20I to complete a 5–0 clean sweep of the series. The result underlined India’s superiority throughout the tour, as they consistently controlled key phases of play and delivered under pressure.

Batting first, India Women posted an imposing 175 for 7 from their 20 overs. The innings was anchored by captain Harmanpreet Kaur, who led from the front with a commanding 68 off 43 balls. After early setbacks that saw Shafali Verma, Gunalan Kamalini and Harleen Deol depart inside the powerplay, India required stability — and Harmanpreet provided exactly that.

The skipper rotated the strike efficiently before accelerating with authority, striking nine boundaries and a six to maintain momentum. Support came in patches, with Amanjot Kaur contributing a useful 21, but it was the late surge that lifted India to a formidable total. Arundhati Reddy produced a stunning cameo, remaining unbeaten on 27 from just 11 deliveries, her clean striking in the death overs decisively shifting momentum in India’s favour.

Among the Sri Lankan bowlers, Kavisha Dilhari and Chamari Athapaththu were the standouts, claiming two wickets apiece, but the attack struggled to contain India in the closing stages.

Chasing 176, Sri Lanka Women responded with intent and determination. Hasini Perera starred at the top of the order with a fluent 65 off 42 balls, while Imesha Dulani compiled a composed 50, keeping the chase alive with a crucial partnership that threatened to tilt the contest.

India, however, showcased their experience and composure. Timely breakthroughs in the middle overs stalled Sri Lanka’s momentum, with Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Vaishnavi Sharma and Shree Charani all making important contributions with the ball. Sharp fielding — highlighted by a crucial run-out — further tightened India’s grip on the match.

Despite a late push from Rashmika Sewwandi, Sri Lanka finished on 160 for 7, falling 15 runs short of the target.

The victory sealed a comprehensive 5–0 series whitewash for India Women, reflecting their consistency, squad depth, and tactical clarity throughout the series. Harmanpreet Kaur’s leadership and match-winning performance in the final game perfectly encapsulated India’s dominance as they closed the tour on a resounding high.

Brief Scores

India Women 175/7 in 20 overs

Harmanpreet Kaur 68 (43), Arundhati Reddy 27* (11)

Kavisha Dilhari 2/11, Chamari Athapaththu 2/21

Sri Lanka Women 160/7 in 20 overs

Hasini Perera 65 (42), Imesha Dulani 50 (39)

Deepti Sharma 1/28, Sneh Rana 1/3