Ranil Abeynaike
Encyclopedia
Ranil Gemunu Abeynaike is a former Sri Lankan cricket
er. Abeynaike was a right-handed batsman who bowled slow left-arm orthodox. Born at Mount Lavinia in the Dominion of Ceylon
(today Sri Lanka).
Abeynaike made his first-class
debut for the Mercantile Cricket Association against the Pakistan Under-25s. His first first-class match for Sri Lanka came against Tamil Nadu
in the 1974/75 Gopalan Trophy
. A further first-class appearance followed in 1976, when he was a part of the Sri Lanka Board President's XI team which played the touring Pakistanis. A year later he appeared for Sri Lanka in a first-class match against the touring Marylebone Cricket Club
, who he also made his List A debut against. In 1978, Abeynaike joined English county Bedfordshire
, making his debut against Cambridgeshire
in that seasons Minor Counties Championship. Following the 1978 season
, he returned to Sri Lanka where he made two List A appearances for the Sri Lanka Board President's XI against the touring West Indians.
Over the coming seasons he continued to play in England for Bedfordshire, playing Minor counties cricket from 1978 to 1982 (with the exception of 1980), making 38 Minor Counties Championship appearances, as well as a single List A appearance in the 1982 NatWest Trophy
against Somerset
. By 1983, Sri Lanka had Test status
, but Abeynaike never gained full international honours. He played for the Sri Lanka Board President's XI in 1983 against the touring Australians, he later joined the Sinhalese Sports Club
, who he made his debut for in a List A match in the final of the 1988/89 Brown's Trophy against the Nondescripts Cricket Club
. He made a further List A appearance the following season, in a repeat of the previous seasons final. The Sinhalese Sports Club won both matches. In the 1989/90 season, Abeynaike made eight first-class appearances for the club, the last of which came against the Cambrians Sports Club. In his first-class career, he played fourteen matches, scoring 412 runs at an average
of 24.23, with a high score of 66. With the ball, he took 9 wickets at a bowling average
of 40.00, with best figures of 6/131. In List A cricket, he scored 136 runs at an average of 136.00 (this inflated average was down to three not out
s in his four innings), with a high score of 46 not out. With the ball, he took 2 wickets at an average of 57.50, with best figures of 2/21.
He has commentated on cricket for United Arab Emirates
based sports broadcaster TEN Sports
since 2004.
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er. Abeynaike was a right-handed batsman who bowled slow left-arm orthodox. Born at Mount Lavinia in the Dominion of Ceylon
Dominion of Ceylon
The Dominion of Ceylon, known today as Sri Lanka, was a dominion, in the British Empire between 1948 and 1972. In 1948, British Ceylon was granted independence as the Dominion of Ceylon. In 1972, the Dominion of Ceylon became a republic within the Commonwealth, and its name was changed to Sri Lanka...
(today Sri Lanka).
Abeynaike made his first-class
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...
debut for the Mercantile Cricket Association against the Pakistan Under-25s. His first first-class match for Sri Lanka came against 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...
in the 1974/75 Gopalan Trophy
M. J. Gopalan Trophy
The M. J. Gopalan Trophy is a bi-annual cricket tournament played between Ceylon and Madras . The idea of the competition came about with the starting of a silver jubilee fund in 1952 to celebrate M.J. Gopalan's 25 years as a cricket and hockey player...
. A further first-class appearance followed in 1976, when he was a part of the Sri Lanka Board President's XI team which played the touring Pakistanis. A year later he appeared for Sri Lanka in a first-class match against the touring 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...
, who he also made his List A debut against. In 1978, Abeynaike joined English county Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire County Cricket Club
Bedfordshire County Cricket Club is one of the county clubs which make up the Minor Counties in the English domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Bedfordshire and competing in the Minor Counties Championship and the MCCA Knockout Trophy. The Minor Counties play three-day...
, making his debut against Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire County Cricket Club
Cambridgeshire County Cricket Club is one of the county clubs which make up the Minor Counties in the English domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Cambridgeshire and playing in the Minor Counties Championship and the MCCA Knockout Trophy.The club is based at The Avenue...
in that seasons Minor Counties Championship. Following the 1978 season
1978 English cricket season
The 1978 English cricket season was played amidst growing concerns about the impact of World Series Cricket. On the domestic front, Kent was the most outstanding county team despite Alan Knott and Derek Underwood having joined WSC.-Honours:...
, he returned to Sri Lanka where he made two List A appearances for the Sri Lanka Board President's XI against the touring West Indians.
Over the coming seasons he continued to play in England for Bedfordshire, playing Minor counties cricket from 1978 to 1982 (with the exception of 1980), making 38 Minor Counties Championship appearances, as well as a single List A appearance in the 1982 NatWest Trophy
1982 NatWest Trophy
The 1982 NatWest Trophy was the 2nd NatWest Trophy. It was an English limited overs county cricket tournament which was held between 3 July and 4 September 1982...
against Somerset
Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Somerset...
. By 1983, Sri Lanka had Test status
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...
, but Abeynaike never gained full international honours. He played for the Sri Lanka Board President's XI in 1983 against the touring Australians, he later joined 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:...
, who he made his debut for in a List A match in the final of the 1988/89 Brown's Trophy against the 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...
. He made a further List A appearance the following season, in a repeat of the previous seasons final. The Sinhalese Sports Club won both matches. In the 1989/90 season, Abeynaike made eight first-class appearances for the club, the last of which came against the Cambrians Sports Club. In his first-class career, he played fourteen matches, scoring 412 runs at an average
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
of 24.23, with a high score of 66. With the ball, he took 9 wickets at a bowling average
Bowling average
Bowling average is a statistic measuring the performance of bowlers in the sport of cricket.A bowler's bowling average is defined as the total number of runs conceded by the bowlers divided by the number of wickets taken by the bowler, so the lower the average the better. It is similar to earned...
of 40.00, with best figures of 6/131. In List A cricket, he scored 136 runs at an average of 136.00 (this inflated average was down to three not out
Not out
In cricket, a batsman will be not out if he comes out to bat in an innings and has not been dismissed by the end of the innings. One may similarly describe a batsman as not out while the innings is still in progress...
s in his four innings), with a high score of 46 not out. With the ball, he took 2 wickets at an average of 57.50, with best figures of 2/21.
He has commentated on cricket for United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
based sports broadcaster TEN Sports
TEN Sports
TEN SPORTS is a sports channel, widely broadcast in Asia. Its key programming includes Cricket, Football and sports-entertainment shows viz. WWE. Ten Sports was launched on April 1, 2002, and became the world's premier sports channel for South Asians, reaching over 55 million homes across the Arab...
since 2004.
External links
- Ranil Abeynaike at ESPNcricinfo
- Ranil Abeynaike at CricketArchiveCricketArchiveCricketArchive is a website that aims to provide a comprehensive archive of records relating to the sport of cricket. It claims to be the most comprehensive cricket database on the internet, including scorecards for all matches of first-class cricket , List A cricket , Women's Test cricket and...