History of cricket in Sri Lanka - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Sri Lanka national cricket team has played Test cricket

Test cricket

Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...

from 1982. Domestic first-class cricket

First-class cricket

First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...

began in 1988.

Beginnings

Cricket was brought to the nation when it was colonized by the English. The first recorded cricket match was played in the country as for back as 1832. although the country then known as Ceylon was playing first class cricket in 1905,it was in the 1975 inaugural world cup that they made their international debut. They were humbled here losing to the west Indies by 9 wickets. They did however, turn heads at the same tour name at wit an excellent display in their match against Australia.
Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...

, formerly known as Ceylon, has an age-old civilization. It came under European influence and control after Dutch colonists arrived in the 17th century; although the interior hilly region of the island remained independent for over a century with its capital at Kandy

Kandy

Kandy is a city in the center of Sri Lanka. It was the last capital of the ancient kings' era of Sri Lanka. The city lies in the midst of hills in the Kandy plateau, which crosses an area of tropical plantations, mainly tea. Kandy is one of the most scenic cities in Sri Lanka; it is both an...

. The British East India Company

British East India Company

The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...

established control of the island in 1796, using war with France as its excuse for commandeering Dutch territory. Ceylon was declared a Crown Colony

Crown colony

A Crown colony, also known in the 17th century as royal colony, was a type of colonial administration of the English and later British Empire....

in 1802, but the island was never to be officially connected with British India. The fall of the kingdom of Kandy in 1815 unified the island under British rule.

As everywhere that the British arrived in numbers, cricket soon followed and it is reasonable to assume that the game was first played on the island by 1800.

Ceylon was renamed Sri Lanka in 1972

Early developments

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

Colombo Cricket Club

The Colombo Cricket Club is a first-class cricket club in Sri Lanka. It is the oldest in the country, having been formed in 1832.-External links:*...

was formed soon afterwards and matches began in November 1833 when it played against the 97th Regiment.

In October 1882, Ivo Bligh's team played an odds game in Colombo en route to Australia, where they "recovered those Ashes". In 1888-89, an English team led by George Vernon

George Vernon

George Frederick Vernon was a cricketer who played first-class cricket for Middlesex County Cricket Club. He also played one Test match for England during the first-ever Ashes tour in 1882-83.Vernon was the son of George Vernon of 32 Montague Square...

toured Ceylon and India, including an 11-a-side game against All-Ceylon at Kandy. In 1890, the Australian team en route to England played in Colombo.

First-class cricket in Ceylon became restricted to games against visiting touring teams, notably the English and Australian teams who used Ceylon as a stopover on the long voyage to each other's country. Douglas Jardine

Douglas Jardine

Douglas Robert Jardine was an English cricketer and captain of the England cricket team from 1931 to 1933–34.When describing cricket seasons, the convention used is that a single year represents an English cricket season, while two years represent a southern hemisphere cricket season because it...

's infamous "bodyline

Bodyline

Bodyline, also known as fast leg theory bowling, was a cricketing tactic devised by the English cricket team for their 1932–33 Ashes tour of Australia, specifically to combat the extraordinary batting skill of Australia's Don Bradman...

team" was there in 1932-33. Occasionally, teams representative of Ceylon played matches abroad, especially in India.

From 1953-4 until 1975-6, the Ceylon Cricket Association played a first-class match against Madras (latterly renamed Tamil Nadu)

Tamil Nadu cricket team

The Tamil Nadu Cricket Team ; , competes in the Super League of the Ranji Trophy, the top cricketing competition in India. The team finished as runners-up behind Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy in the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons establishing themselves as one of the strongest teams in the country...

for the Gopalan Trophy. This fixture was played in Colombo roughly every two years, with one further fixture in 1982-3, alternating with the fixture being held in Madras.

Premier Trophy

In 1938, the first domestic competition was established when 12 teams competed for the Daily News Trophy. The tournament's title was changed to the P Saravanamuttu Trophy in 1950-51 and then the Robert Senanayake Trophy in 1976-77. After Sri Lanka began playing Test cricket in 1982, the inevitable sponsors came on board and the tournament was rebranded as the Lakspray Trophy for the 1988-89 season when, for the first time, it was designated first-class

First-class cricket

.

Subsequently, the title of P Saravanamuttu Trophy was resurrected from 1990 and since 1998 it has been called the Premier Trophy

Premier Trophy

The Premier Trophy 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.-List of winners:...

.

The Sinhalese Sports Club

Sinhalese Sports Club

The Sinhalese Sports Club is a first-class cricket club in Sri Lanka. Sinhalese is the most successful club in Sri Lankan domestic cricket, having won the Premier Trophy a record 30 times to 2008.-History:-Honours:...

has won the tournament a record 29 times to 2006.

For a full list of winners from 1938, see : Premier Trophy

Premier Trophy

Premier Limited Overs Tournament

The first limited overs cricket tournament in Sri Lanka was the Brown's Trophy in 1988-89. Only four teams competed in the inaugural competition: Sinhalese Sports Club

Sinhalese Sports Club

(winners); Nondescripts Cricket Club

Nondescripts Cricket Club

Nondescripts Cricket Club is a first-class cricket team based in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It was founded in 1888...

(runners-up); Galle Cricket Club

Galle Cricket Club

Galle Cricket Club is a first-class cricket team based in Galle, Sri Lanka. They play their home games at Galle International Stadium, which was reconstructed after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.-Notable players:Sports...

; Bloomfield Cricket and Athletic Club

Bloomfield Cricket and Athletic Club

Bloomfield Cricket and Athletic Club is a first-class cricket team based in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is one of Sri Lanka's oldest cricket clubs founded in 1892 and competes in the Premier Trophy, which it has won eight times.-History:...

. The tournament was renamed the Hatna Trophy in 1990-91 and then given its current name Premier Limited Overs Tournament

Premier Limited Overs Tournament

The Premier Limited Overs Tournament is the main domestic limited overs cricket competition in Sri Lanka. It was established in 1988 and has existed under three different names.-List of winners:Brown's TrophyHatna Trophy...

in 1998-99.

The competition to date has been dominated by three teams: Bloomfield Cricket and Athletic Club

Bloomfield Cricket and Athletic Club

has won five times; Sinhalese Sports Club

Sinhalese Sports Club

and Nondescripts Cricket Club

Nondescripts Cricket Club

Nondescripts Cricket Club is a first-class cricket team based in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It was founded in 1888...

have won four times each.

For a full list of winners from 1988, see : Premier Limited Overs Tournament

Premier Limited Overs Tournament

Leading players by season

The lists below give the leading runscorers and wicket–takers in each domestic season.

Batsmen

1988–89 – DSBP Kuruppu – 339 @ 113.00 (HS 126)
1989–90 – WAA Wasantha – 519 @ 57.66 (HS 134)
1990–91 – UNK Fernando – 656 @ 65.60 (HS 160)
1991–92 – MC Mendis – 551 @ 78.71 (HS 177*)
1992–93 – PA de Silva – 591 @ 53.72 (HS 143)
1993–94 – MAR Samarasekera – 701 @ 50.07 (HS 191)
1994–95 – MS Atapattu – 1302 @ 93.00 (HS 181)
1995–96 – RP Arnold – 1430 @ 79.44 (HS 217*)
1996–97 – RS Kaluwitharana – 1172 @ 73.25 (HS 179)
1997–98 – MS Atapattu – 868 @ 96.44 (HS 223)
1998–99 – TM Dilshan – 1027 @ 51.35 (HS 194)
1999–00 – DA Gunawardene – 711 @ 41.82 (HS 140)
2000–01 – RPAH Wickramaratne – 830 @ 51.87 (HS 139)
2001–02 – DPMD Jayawardene – 1426 @ 89.12 (HS 274)
2002–03 – SKL de Silva – 938 @ 42.63 (HS 133)
2003–04 – TM Dilshan – 1284 @ 51.36 (HS 151)
2004–05 – S Kalavitigoda – 885 @ 49.16 (HS 152)
2005–06 – WMG Ramyakumara – 993 @ 62.06 (HS 150*)
2006–07 – BARS Priyadarshana – 822 @ 43.26 (HS 140)
2007–08 – NT Paranavitana – 1059 @ 81.46 (HS 236)
2008–09 – AD Mathews – 1038 @ 79.84 (HS 270)
2009–10 –AD MATHEWS

Bowlers

1988–89 – SD Anurasiri – 24 @ 13.12 (BB 8–53)
1989–90 – KPJ Warnaweera – 71 @ 13.47 (BB 7–16)
1990–91 – FS Ahangama – 39 @ 14.89 (BB 5–44)
1991–92 – GP Wickramasinghe – 38 @ 13.10 (BB 10–41)
1992–93 – CM Hathurusingha – 35 @ 16.65 (BB 8–40)
1993–94 – AMN Munasinghe – 46 @ 16.43 (BB 9–38)
1994–95 – SD Anurasiri – 78 @ 15.67 (BB 8–90)
1995–96 – M Jayasena – 67 @ 21.41 (BB 5–72)
1996–97 – ADB Ranjith – 70 @ 16.40 (BB 9–29)
1997–98 – UC Hathurusingha – 35 @ 16.17 (BB 7–55)
1998–99 – PP Wickramasinghe – 76 @ 13.01 (BB 8–47)
1999–00 – D Hettiarachchi – 55 @ 15.09 (BB 5–20)
2000–01 – S Weerakoon – 80 @ 12.97 (BB 7–51)
2001–02 – M Muralitharan – 87 @ 13.47 (BB 9–51)
2002–03 – PN Ranjith – 69 @ 17.10 (BB 6–27)
2003–04 – M Muralitharan – 96 @ 14.40 (BB 7–46)
2004–05 – S Weerakoon – 52 @ 20.80 (BB 7–81)
2005–06 – SADU Indrasiri – 60 @ 13.55 (BB 7–61)
2006–07 – RMGK Sirisoma – 60 @ 15.50 (BB 7–42)
2007–08 – BAW Mendis – 68 @ 10.51 (BB 7–37)
2008–09 – S Weerakoon – 71 @ 20.35 (BB 7–40) and S Prasanna – 71 @ 20.70 (BB 8–59)
2009–10 –

International cricket

Throughout the 20th century, the game became increasingly popular in Sri Lanka and the national team won the ICC Trophy

ICC Trophy

The ICC World Cup Qualifier is an international one-day cricket tournament run under the auspices of the International Cricket Council. Any Associate or Affiliate member of the ICC may attempt to qualify for the ICC Trophy by means of a system of regional qualifying events. The test-playing Full...

in 1979. On 21 July 1981, Sri Lanka was admitted to full membership of the ICC and was awarded Test Match status. The inaugural Test was played at the Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu Stadium in Colombo

Colombo

Colombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...

in February 1982 against England but Sri Lanka lost by 7 wickets.

Sri Lanka won the 1996 Cricket World Cup

1996 Cricket World Cup

The 1996 Cricket World Cup, also called the Wills World Cup after its official sponsors, was the sixth edition of the tournament organized by the International Cricket Council . It was the second World Cup to be hosted by Pakistan and India, and for the first time by Sri Lanka...

by defeating Australia.

Australia

Several Australian teams stopped and played matches in Ceylon while traveling to England and back.

In the aftermath of World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, came the Australian Services cricket team in Ceylon and India in 1945-46

Australian Services cricket team in Ceylon and India in 1945-46

The Australian Services cricket team which had played in England in 1945 went home via India and Ceylon, playing further first-class matches in both countries....

, featuring Keith Miller

Keith Miller

Keith Ross Miller MBE was an Australian Test cricketer and a Royal Australian Air Force pilot during World War II. Miller is widely regarded as Australia's greatest ever all-rounder. Because of his ability, irreverent manner and good looks he was a crowd favourite...

who scored a century in Colombo. Miller returned as part of the Australian cricket team in England in 1948 which played a game in Colombo during a stopover on their voyage to England.

It was not until 1969-70

Australian cricket team in Ceylon and India in 1969-70

The Australia national cricket team toured Ceylon and India in the last three months of 1969. The team, captained by Bill Lawry, played five Test matches against India, captained by the Nawab of Pataudi Jr. The Australians also played first-class matches versus each of the five Indian Zone teams:...

that another Australian team arrived in Ceylon. This team played one first-class match against the national Ceylon team before going on to India for a five-Test series.

The 1981 Australians to England

Australian cricket team in England in 1981

The tour by the Australian cricket team in England in 1981 included the 51st Ashes series of Test matches between Australia and England. Despite having been 1–0 down after two Tests, England won the next three Tests to finish 3–1 victors , thus retaining the Ashes...

played a match in Colombo against Sri Lanka only months before Sri Lanka achieved Test status.

During Sri Lanka's Test era, there have been five Australian tours of the country, four of which featured Test cricket. The visitors in 1996 were there to make up the numbers in a One Day International (LOI) tri-series against India and Sri Lanka. Australia reached the final of the tri-series but lost by 50 runs to Sri Lanka.

England

By 1911, there had been five English teams in Ceylon. Those were led by Ivo Bligh in 1882-83

English cricket team in Australia in 1882-83

The England national cricket team toured Australia and Ceylon in 1882-83.The team, captained by Ivo Bligh, was on a quest "to recover those Ashes", a reference to the famous RIP notice that was published in the aftermath of England's defeat by Australia at The Oval during the previous English...

; George Vernon

George Vernon

in 1889-90; WG Grace in 1891-92

English cricket team in Australia in 1891-92

The England national cricket team toured Australia and Ceylon in 1891-92.The team, captained by W G Grace, was organised by Lord Sheffield who later subscribed the Sheffield Shield to Australian domestic first-class cricket....

; Lord Hawke in 1892-93

Lord Hawke's XI cricket team in Ceylon and India in 1892-93

An English cricket team led by Lord Hawke toured Ceylon and India in the winter of 1892-93.The team played four first-class matches, all of them in India, including the first match ever to involve an All-India XI. This was the second visit by an English team to India and the third to Ceylon.The...

; and Andrew Stoddart

Andrew Stoddart

Andrew Ernest Stoddart was an English cricketer and rugby union player. He was a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1893.-Cricket career:...

in 1894-95

English cricket team in Australia in 1894-95

The England cricket team toured Australia and Ceylon in 1894-95.The team, captained by Andrew Stoddart, played 24 matches in total, of which it won 10, drew 10 and lost 4...

. The Bligh, Grace and Stoddart teams were en route to Australia while the Vernon and Hawke ventures took in Ceylon as part of visits to India.

Marylebone Cricket Club

Marylebone Cricket Club

Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...

(MCC) teams have visited on no less than 23 occasions since 1911-12

Marylebone Cricket Club tours of Ceylon and Sri Lanka

International cricket teams raised by Marylebone Cricket Club have visited Sri Lanka on no less than 23 occasions since 1911-12, the most recent being in the winter of 2000-01....

, most recently in 2000-01.

Other teams sent from England have been Sir Julien Cahn's XI cricket team in Ceylon in 1936-37

Sir Julien Cahn's XI cricket team in Ceylon in 1936-37

Sir Julien Cahn's cricket team toured Ceylon and Malaya in the spring of 1937.The team played nine games in all but the majority were against minor opposition...

, DH Robins' XI cricket team in Sri Lanka in 1977-78

DH Robins' XI cricket team in Sri Lanka in 1977-78

Derrick Robins assembled a cricket team to tour Sri Lanka in October 1977, playing one first-class and one limited overs match versus the Sri Lanka Board President's XI in Colombo and an additional first-class match versus the Central Province Cricket Association President's XI in Kandy.Both of the...

and English cricket team in India in 1984-85

English cricket team in India in 1984-85

The England national cricket team toured India in 1984-85, playing a five-match Test series versus India.* at Wankhede Stadium, Bombay – India won by 8 wickets* at Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi – England won by 8 wickets...

. The latter was a very short stopover by the England team en route to India.

The England national cricket team has played four Test series

Test cricket

in Sri Lanka: 1981-82, 1992–93, 2000–01 and 2003-04. A fifth tour is presently underway (Oct - Dec 2007).

India

The first Indian team to tour Sri Lanka was Elphinstone College

Elphinstone College

Elphinstone College is an institution of higher education affiliated to the University of Mumbai. Established in 1856, it is one of the oldest colleges of the University of Mumbai. It was exalted as a prestigious seat of learning during the British Raj and is generally observed for its vibrant alumni...

, Bombay

Mumbai

Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...

, in 1903-04.

1945

The India national cricket team visited Ceylon in April 1945 and played one first-class match versus Ceylon at the Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu Stadium in Colombo

Colombo

.

The match was drawn on account of bad weather. India's team was a strong one captained by Vijay Merchant

Vijay Merchant

Vijaysingh Madhavji Merchant , real name Vijay Madhavji Thakersey was an Indian cricketer. A right-hand batter and occasional right-arm medium pace bowler, Merchant played first class cricket for Mumbai cricket team as well as 10 Test matches for India between 1929 and 1951...

and including notable players such as Shute Banerjee

Shute Banerjee

Sarobindu Nath "Shute" Banerjee was a cricketer who represented India in one official and five unofficial Test matches...

, Mushtaq Ali

Mushtaq Ali

Syed Mushtaq Ali was a former Indian cricketer, and an aggressive Test batsman. Ali holds the distinction of scoring the first Test century by any Indian overseas, when he hit a ton for the team in 1936 at Manchester in England.A Wisden Special Award winner, he scored four first class hundreds in...

, Lala Amarnath

Lala Amarnath

Nanik Amarnath Bhardwaj was an Indian Test cricketer. He was the first cricketer to score a Test century for the Indian cricket team, which he achieved on debut...

, Vijay Hazare

Vijay Hazare

Vijay Samuel Hazare was an Indian cricket player from the state of Maharashtra. He captained the Indian cricket team in 14 matches between 1951 and 1953...

and Rusi Modi

Rusi Modi

Rustomji Sheriyar 'Rusi' Modi was an Indian batsman who played for the Indian National Cricket Team from 1946 to 1952....

1956-57

India visited Ceylon in November 1956 and played two first-class international matches versus Ceylon at the Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu Stadium in Colombo

Colombo

1st international – match drawn
2nd international – match drawn

The Indian team was captained by Polly Umrigar

Polly Umrigar

Pahlan Ratanji "Polly" Umrigar was an Indian cricketer. He played first-class cricket for Bombay, and Test cricket in the Indian cricket team, mainly as a middle-order batsman but also bowling occasional medium pace and off spin. He captained the Indian team in eight Test matches from 1955 to...

and included Nari Contractor

Nari Contractor

Nariman Jamshedji "Nari" Contractor is a former cricket player. He was left-handed opening batsman whose international career was ended abruptly by a serious injury....

, Subhash Gupte

Subhash Gupte

Subhashchandra Pandharinath "Fergie" Gupte was one of Test cricket's finest spin bowlers. Sir Garry Sobers pronounced him the best leg spinner that it had been his pleasure to see. Gupte flighted and spun the ball sharply, and possessed two different googlies...

, Pankaj Roy

Pankaj Roy

Pankaj Roy was an Indian cricketer. A right-handed opening batsman, he is best known for establishing the world record opening partnership of 413 runs, together with Vinoo Mankad, against New Zealand at Chennai. The record stood until 2008. He was honoured with the Padma Shri...

, A. G. Kripal Singh

A. G. Kripal Singh

Amritsar Govindsingh Kripal Singh was an Indian Test cricketer.Kripal Singh came from a famous cricketing family. His father A.G. Ram Singh was unlucky not to play for India, brother Milkha Singh was a Test cricketer, another brother, two sons and nephew all played first class cricket...

and Vijay Manjrekar

Vijay Manjrekar

Vijay Laxman Manjrekar is a former Indian cricketer who played 55 Tests. A small man, he was a fine cutter and hooker of the ball. He was the father of Sanjay Manjrekar....

1973-74

India toured Sri Lanka in January and February 1974. India played two first-class and two limited overs matches versus Sri Lanka and two further first-class matches versus the Sri Lanka Board President's XI. India defeated Sri Lanka at the Sinhalese Sports Club Ground

Sinhalese Sports Club Ground

The Sinhalese Sports Club is one of the most famous cricket grounds in Sri Lanka. It is theheadquarters of Sri Lanka Cricket, the controlling body of cricket in Sri Lanka. The Ground often cited as the Lord's of Sri Lanka, hosting most domestic finals and one of preeminent international cricket...

by 6 wickets but the other three first-class games were impacted by the weather and were drawn.

1937

All-Ceylon made 227 for 8 wickets with De Saram top scoring with a typical brick by brick innings of 90.Douglas Dias- Jayasinha was the first man from the Southern Province to play for All Ceylonwho was an opening batsman was held back by S. Saravanamuttu the skipper, who felt it was too much of a gamble to risk sending the young man in, that early. He was a free scoring batsman at the time and since there was overnight rain on the SSC grounds they wanted a more sedate start than what D.D. promised. This they got through George Hubert and Louis Mendis. Eventually Jayasinha made his way to the wicket at the fall of the fifth wicket and made a patient yet uncharacteristic 24 runs in 45 minutes to help Derrick de Saram at the other end towards his mammoth individual score. In reply, New Zealand made 177 for 5 wickets with Vivien 68 not out and Walter Hadlee, father of Richard, himself making 18. That team also consisted of such well known names as Martin Donnelly and Mervyn Wallace, all of whom had done so well in England just a few weeks before.

1984-85

New Zealand played two limited overs internationals versus Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka won the first match by 4 wickets and New Zealand won the second by 7 wickets.

1948-49

The Pakistan national cricket team visited Ceylon in April 1949 to play two first-class matches versus Ceylon. Both games were played at the Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu Stadium in Colombo

Colombo

. Pakistan, captained by Mohammad Saeed

Mohammad Saeed (cricketer)

Mian Mohammad Saeed was a Pakistani cricketer born in Lahore.A right-handed batsman, Mohammad the first captain of the Pakistan cricket team and led them just before they were awarded Test status...

, won the first match by an innings and 192 runs, Saeed himself top-scoring with 93. The great Pakistan bowler Fazal Mahmood

Fazal Mahmood

Fazal Mahmood was a Pakistani cricketer, regarded as the finest pace bowler of his country's early years. He played in 34 Test matches and took 139 wickets at a bowling average of 24.70...

took 4-15 as Ceylon were bowled out for only 95 in their second innings. Pakistan won the second match by 10 wickets despite some good batting by Ceylon in their first innings.

1972-73

Pakistan visited Sri Lanka in November 1972 to play a single first-class match versus the Sri Lanka national team at the Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu Stadium in Colombo

Colombo

. The match was drawn after being affected by rain. Pakistan, captained by Intikhab Alam

Intikhab Alam

Intikhab Alam Khan is a retired Pakistani cricketer who played in 47 Tests and 4 ODIs from 1959 to 1977. He also played in English county cricket for Surrey between 1969 and 1981....

, scored 262-8 declared and 48-3 declared. Sri Lanka scored 133 and 120-3.

1975-76

Pakistan toured Sri Lanka in January 1976 to play three first-class and two limited overs matches. Sri Lanka surprisingly won the opening first-class match at Colombo Cricket Club Ground

Colombo Cricket Club Ground

Colombo Cricket Club Ground is a multi-purpose stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is currently used mostly for domestic first-class cricket matches and for hosting warm up matches for touring teams. The stadium can hold 6,000 people and hosted its first Test match in 1984. It is one of the smallest...

by 4 wickets and then Pakistan won the second match at the same venue by the same margin. In between, Pakistan played the Sri Lanka Board President's XI at Asgiriya Stadium

Asgiriya Stadium

Asgiriya International Stadium, is a Cricket stadium situated in Kandy, Sri Lanka. Asgiriya Stadium is the private property of Trinity College, Kandy. It is around a 10 minute walk from the centre of the city. The venue would usually be used when an international team toured Sri Lanka for a Test...

in Kandy

Kandy

and they won this by 7 wickets.

1978-79

Pakistan, captained by Majid Khan, visited Sri Lanka in April 1979 to play a limited overs match versus the Sri Lanka national team. The match at the Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu Stadium was won by Pakistan by 55 runs after scoring 164-8 in their 40 overs. Sri Lanka in reply could only manage 109-8.

1948-49

The West Indies cricket team visited Ceylon in February 1949 and played two first-class matches versus Ceylon. West Indies won the first match at Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu Stadium in Colombo

Colombo

by an innings and 22 runs after scoring 462-2 declared with centuries by Allan Rae, Everton Weekes

Everton Weekes

Sir Everton DeCourcy Weekes, KCMG, GCM, OBE is a leading former West Indian cricketer. Along with Frank Worrell and Clyde Walcott, he formed what was known as "The Three Ws" of West Indian cricket.-Youth and early career:...

and Clyde Walcott

Clyde Walcott

Sir Clyde Leopold Walcott, KA, GCM was a West Indian cricketer. Walcott was a member of the "three W's", the other two being Everton Weekes and Frank Worrell: all were very successful batsmen from Barbados, born within a short distance of each other in Bridgetown, Barbados in a period of 18...

. Prior Jones

Prior Jones

Prior Erskine Waverley Jones was a West Indian cricketer who played in nine Tests from 1947-48 to 1951-52....

took ten wickets in the match. The second match at the same venue was drawn, Rae making another century for West Indies.

1966-67

West Indies visited Ceylon in January 1967 and played a single first-class match at the Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu Stadium in Colombo

Colombo

versus Ceylon. The match was drawn. West Indies was captained by Gary Sobers who scored 115 in his team's only innings. Other centuries were scored by Basil Butcher

Basil Butcher

Basil Fitzherbert Butcher is a former West Indian cricketer who played in 44 Tests from 1958 to 1969. He was a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1970....

and Clive Lloyd

Clive Lloyd

Clive Hubert Lloyd CBE AO is a former West Indies cricketer. He captained the West Indies between 1974 and 1985 and oversaw their rise to become the dominant Test-playing nation, a position that was only relinquished in the latter half of the 1990s...

1974-75

West Indies visited Sri Lanka in February 1975 as part of a wider tour of India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

and Pakistan

Pakistan

Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...

. Captained by Clive Lloyd

Clive Lloyd

, West Indies played two first-class matches against Sri Lanka, that were both drawn, and a limited overs match that West Indies won by 8 wickets.

1978-79

West Indies visited Sri Lanka in February 1979. The main first-class match with Sri Lanka at Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu Stadium in Colombo

Colombo

was drawn. West Indies had previously drawn a warm-up game against Sri Lanka Board President's XI at Colombo Cricket Club Ground

Colombo Cricket Club Ground

. West Indies also played three limited overs matches.

1983-84

The Zimbabwe national cricket team toured Sri Lanka in December 1983. At this time, Sri Lanka had just achieved Test status but Zimbabwe had not. The Zimbabwe team played two first-class matches versus Sri Lanka Board President's XI at Tyronne Fernando Stadium

Tyronne Fernando Stadium

De Soysa Park is a multi-use stadium in Moratuwa, Sri Lanka. It is currently used mostly for cricket matches. The stadium holds 15,000 people and hosted its first Test match in 1992. The ground opened in 1941 and gained Test status in 1979...

and a Sri Lankan XI at Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu Stadium. Both games were drawn. Zimbabwe also played three limited overs matches against the Sri Lankan XI.

1930-31

The Maharajkumar of Vizianagram

Maharajkumar of Vizianagram

Lieutenant Colonel Sir Vijayananda Gajapathi Raju , better known as the Maharajkumar of Vizianagram or Vizzy, was an Indian cricketer, cricket administrator and politician.- Childhood :...

(aka "Vizzy") raised a team that toured Ceylon in December 1930 and played three first-class matches against a team called Dr J Rockwood's Europeans XI at the Nomads Ground in Victoria Park, Colombo. The tourists won the first game by an innings & 259 runs. The other two games were drawn. Vizzy's team included some notable players, including the England opening partnership of Jack Hobbs

Jack Hobbs

Sir John Berry "Jack" Hobbs was an English professional cricketer who played for Surrey from 1905 to 1934 and for England in 61 Test matches from 1908 to 1930....

and Herbert Sutcliffe

Herbert Sutcliffe

Herbert Sutcliffe was an English professional cricketer who represented Yorkshire and England as an opening batsman. Apart from one match in 1945, his first-class career spanned the period between the two World Wars...

. Several good Indian players were involved, including CK Nayudu and Mushtaq Ali

Mushtaq Ali

1949-50

A Commonwealth XI cricket team

Commonwealth XI cricket team

The Commonwealth XI cricket team played over 100 first-class cricket matches from 1949 to 1968. The team started out as a side made up of mostly English, Australian and West Indian cricketers, that toured the subcontinent but later on played first-class fixtures in England...

visited Ceylon in February and March 1950 as part of a three-nation tour that also took in India and Pakistan. The team played two matches at the Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu Stadium in Colombo

Colombo

against an All-Ceylon XI and against a Ceylon-India-Pakistan Combined XI. The tourists won the first match by an innings and 51 runs; the second match was drawn. Captained by Jock Livingston

Jock Livingston

Leonard "Jock" Livingston, born at Hurlstone Park, Sydney on 3 May 1920 and died there on 16 January 1998, was an Australian cricketer who played most of his first-class cricket in England.-Cricket career:...

, who also kept wicket, the team had several well-known players including Frank Worrell

Frank Worrell

Sir Frank Mortimer Maglinne Worrell is sometimes referred to by his nickname of Tae and was a West Indies cricketer and Jamaican senator...

, George Tribe

George Tribe

George Edward Tribe was an Australian cricketer who played in 3 Tests from 1946 to 1947, as well as an Australian rules footballer with the Footscray Football Club in the VFL....

, Bill Alley

Bill Alley

William Edward Alley was a cricketer who played 400 first-class matches for New South Wales, Somerset and a Commonwealth XI....

and George Pope.

1950-51

Another Commonwealth XI cricket team

Commonwealth XI cricket team

visited Ceylon in February and March 1951. The team played two matches at the Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu Stadium in Colombo

Colombo

against an All-Ceylon XI and against a Ceylon-India-Pakistan Combined XI. The tourists won the second match by 120 runs; the first match was drawn. Captained by Les Ames

Les Ames

Leslie Ethelbert George Ames, CBE was an outstanding wicket-keeper and batsman for the England cricket team and Kent County Cricket Club. In his obituary, the Wisden of 1991 described him as the greatest wicket-keeper-batsman of all time...

, who also kept wicket, the team had several well-known players including Frank Worrell

Frank Worrell

Sir Frank Mortimer Maglinne Worrell is sometimes referred to by his nickname of Tae and was a West Indies cricketer and Jamaican senator...

, Derek Shackleton

Derek Shackleton

Derek Shackleton was a Hampshire and England bowler. He took over 100 wickets in 20 consecutive seasons of first-class cricket, but only played in seven Tests for England. As of 2007, he has the seventh-highest tally of first-class wickets, and the most first-class wickets of any player who...

, Sonny Ramadhin

Sonny Ramadhin

Sonny Ramadhin was a West Indian cricketer, and a dominant bowler of the 1950s. He was the first West Indian cricketers of Indian origin, and was one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1951.- Biography and career :...

and Jack Ikin

Jack Ikin

John Thomas Ikin, known as Jack Ikin was an English cricketer, who played in eighteen Tests from 1946 to 1955...

1967-68

An International XI cricket team toured Ceylon, India

India

and Pakistan

Pakistan

during the winter of 1967-68 and played one match in Ceylon versus the Ceylon Board President's XI at the Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu Stadium in Colombo

Colombo

. The International XI won by 194 runs. The team consisted of Mickey Stewart (captain), Roger Tolchard

Roger Tolchard

Roger William Tolchard is an English former cricketer, who played in four Tests and one One Day International for England in the late 1970s.-Life and career:Tolchard was a wicket-keeper...

(wk), Derek Underwood

Derek Underwood

Derek Underwood MBE is an English former international cricketer, and a former President of the MCC....

, Dennis Amiss

Dennis Amiss

Dennis Leslie Amiss MBE was an English cricketer and cricket administrator.Amiss suffered a serious back injury whilst playing soccer in his teenage years, which entailed him starting each day of his sporting life undergoing stretching routines to loosen up.He played cricket for both Warwickshire...

, Keith Fletcher

Keith Fletcher

Keith Fletcher is a former English cricketer, who played for Essex and England. He later became England's team manager. His nickname was "The Gnome of Essex", so christened by his Essex team-mate, Ray East, because Fletcher's winklepickers had begun to curl up at the toes due to wear...

, Khalid Ibadulla

Khalid Ibadulla

Khalid "Billy" Ibadulla is a former Pakistani cricketer and TVNZ cricket commentator. He played in four Tests between 1964 and 1967. Most of his cricket was played for Warwickshire, for whom he appeared between 1954 and 1972...

, Harold Rhodes

Harold Rhodes (cricketer)

Harold James Rhodes, sometimes called Dusty Rhodes is an English former cricketer, who played for England in 1959, for Derbyshire between 1953 and 1975, and for the MCC between 1959 and 1963...

, Gamini Goonesena

Gamini Goonesena

Gamini Goonesena , born in Colombo, was a Sri Lankan first-class cricketer prior to his country being granted Test status...

, Ken Suttle

Ken Suttle

Kenneth George 'Ken' Suttle was an English cricketer. He was primarily a left-handed batsman but was also a useful slow left-arm bowler. His first-class career with Sussex lasted from 1949 to 1971. He played in 612 first-class matches...

, Harry Latchman

Harry Latchman

Amritt Harrichand Latchman is a former Middlesex and Nottinghamshire cricketer born in Kingston, Jamaica. A spin bowler and occasionally successful lower order right-hand bat, Latchman played over 200 first class cricket matches for his two English counties between 1965 and 1976, securing over 500...

and Mike Denness

Mike Denness

Mike Denness is a former Scottish cricketer who played for England, Scotland, Essex and Kent. Scotland did not have a representative international team at the time of Denness' career, so he could only play for England at Test and ODI level. Denness became the first Scotsman to captain England...

. Ceylon had no answer to the guile of Underwood, who produced outstanding figures of 8-10 and 7-33.

External links

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Beginnings

Early developments

Premier Trophy

Premier Limited Overs Tournament

Leading players by season

Batsmen

Bowlers

International cricket

Australia

England

India

1945

1956-57

1973-74

1937

1984-85

1948-49

1972-73

1975-76

1978-79

1948-49

1966-67

1974-75

1978-79

1983-84

1930-31

1949-50

1950-51

1967-68

Further reading

External links