Sports
Cherished sporting milestones of Air Force
70 Years of Sri Lanka Air Force Sports
During the 70 years of existence, the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) has produced some outstanding sportsmen and women who have brought immense glory to the country. The notable feature of most of these great men and women is that they have rendered their service not only in the field of sports but also in their own profession in the SLAF. The following achievements of these sports personnel have been written in gold in the annals of the SLAF.
First National Record by an Airman
Leading Aircraftman (LAC) Nagalingam Balasubramanium became the first airman to create a National Record, when he cleared a distance of 48 and 1/2 feet (14.64) at the triple jump event at the Quadrangle Athletics Meet on 28 November 1959.
Asian Games Representation
LAC Lakshman de Alwis became the first sportsman from Air Force to represent the country at the Asian Games, when he represented Ceylon at the 4th Asian Games held in Jakarta in 1962 in 200m and 400m events. De Alwis was the Ceylonese champion in 200m and 400m in early 1960s and established the national record for 400m (49.8) on 19 July 1964.
“Jets” relay team equals the National Record in 4 x 200m relay
Air Force relay team popularly known as the Jets Team equaled the National Record in 4 x 200m relay event on 7 September 1963 with a timing of 1:30.2 seconds. Earlier the Ace Athletic Club had established the national record. LAC Lakshman De Alwis, LAC RAC Hubert, LACG George and LAC Cristy Fernando represented the relay team.
LAC Maurice Coomerawel completes a hat-trick of wins at the prestigious Tour de Lanka Cycle Race
Coomarawel who represented the country at the Rome Olympics in 1960 had the distinction of winning the prestigious Tour de Lanka on four occasions. He initially won the race in 1960. Then he went on to complete a hat-trick of victories, by winning the Tour de Lanka in 1965, 1966 and 1967.
LAC GAS Gunasinghe represents the country in Boxing at the Commonwealth Games in Jamaica in 1966
Champion boxer LAC GAS Gunasinghe became the only Ceylonese Boxer to participate at the 8th Commonwealth Games in Jamaica in 1966. He represented the country at the International contest against India and Pakistan in 1963 and won a silver medal in the meet against Pakistan. He won a silver medal at Singapore Sports Festival held in August 1965 as well.
SLAF Soccer Team win the prestigious FA Cup in 1975 and 1986
The SLAF Soccer team was a leading soccer team in the country in 1970s and 1980s and won many major championships on offer. They won the FA Cup in 1975 and 1986 whilst producing champion players in the caliber of Mahinda Aluwihare, Sumith Walpola, Mahinda Palitha and Sampath Perera. In 1975, SLAF won the FA Cup under LAC Edmand Silva and Corporal SC Kapukotuwa led the team to victory in 1986.
Sergeant Wijaya Nimal Perera wins a bronze at the 8th Asian Games
Sergeant Wijaya Nimal Perera was an outstanding boxer produced by the SLAF. He won a bronze medal in Fly Weight Category at the 8th Asian Games in Thailand in 1978. He is the first SLAF athlete to have won a medal at the Asian Games. In 1974, Perera was selected as the Best Boxer at National Boxing Championship, Defence Service Boxing Meet, Clifford Cup, Layton Cup and Albert Perera Memorial Cup.
Squadron Leader Susil Fernando became the first Test Cricketer to be produced by the SLAF
SqnLdr Susil Fernando became the first Test cricketer to be produced by the SLAF, when he made his Test debut on 4 March 1983 against New Zealand as the 17th Test player of the country. He represented the country in five Tests. SqnLdr Fernando made his ODI debut in 1983 and played in seven ODIs from 1983 to 1984. The highlight of his career was the representation of the country at the Cricket World Cup in 1983 held in England.
SLAF Rugby Team wins the prestigious Clifford Cup in 1986
The finest moment of SLAF Rugby was the winning of Clifford Cup in 1986 under Corporal Lakshman Caldera beating a star-studded Police SC 10 -8. In the Quarter Finals, SLAF beat Navy SC 44 -10 and beat CH & FC 8-4 in the semifinal. A try in the extra time by Flying Officer Harsha Fernando helped Air Force SC beat CH & FC after the scores stood at 4-all at full time. Air Force SC confronted the mighty Policemen in the final on 16 August 1986 and scored a sensational 10-8 win to clinch club rugby’s richest prize – the Clifford Cup. Second row forward 5193 Corporal Lofty Perera (jnr) scored the solitary try for the Airmen, while 4450 Corporal Tony Wimalasuriya fired across two penalties.
Group Captain TB Marmbe represents Sri Lanka at three Rugby Asiads and captains the national Team at a match in Rugby Asiad in 1988
Group Captain Tikiri Marambe was one of the best Rugby players to represent SLAF. A Trinity Lion, he represented the national rugby team from 1982 to 1988 and captained the team against Korea at the Rugby Asiad in 1988. GpCapt Marambe, who represented Sri Lanka at three Rugby Asiad’s during the period is considered as one of the best scrum halfs produced by the country.
Group Captain Nalin de Silva excels for National 7s Rugby Team that wins the “Bowl” Trophy at the Hong Kong 7s in 1984
Known as the Iron man in Rugby circles, GpCapt de Silva represented the National Rugby team from 1982 to 1987 and was the Vice-Captain at the 8th Asian Rugby Asiad held in Singapore in 1982. He represented the National team at the Rugby Asiad held in Japan in 1984 and toured to Wales in 1984. GpCapt de Silva was a key member of National Sevens Team that won the “Bowl” Trophy at the Hong Kong 7s in 1984.
Corporal Nimali Liyanarchchi wins silver in 800m at the CISM World Military Games in China in 2019
The former national champion in the 800m and 1500m, Nimali Liyanarchchi brought immense glory to Sri Lanka and SLAF through her record breaking performances. During the 7th edition of the World Military Games, that was held in Wuhan, China in October 2019, Cpl Nimali Liyanarchchi won the silver medal in women’s 800m thus became the first silver medalist produced by Sri Lanka Defence Services at the World Military Games.
Air Cdre Padman de Costa
Former Secretary Air Force Sports Council and Defence Services Sports Board
The first truly heavyweight clash of this expanded T20 World Cup format comes freighted with both history and subplots. A rematch of the 2010 World T20 final at Kensington Oval, the match pits Jos Buttler’s defending champions – who are aiming to become the first team to retain the trophy – against the Australian winning machine, victors at the 2021 edition and current world title-holders in Test and ODI cricket. And that’s before you throw in the Ashes for afters.
Already there is added pressure on England, after the rain in Bridgetown led to a share of the points in their opener against Scotland (and that having conceded 90 runs from 10 overs without taking a wicket in a tepid bowling display). Lose to their oldest rivals and it will leave their Super 8 prospects open to being waylaid by the perils of net run-rate calculations, or worse.
The Scotland match was the third abandonment in five suffered by England, after a rain-affected home series against Pakistan, which has clearly hampered their readiness for this campaign after almost six months without playing T20 together. It does not take much for a side to click in this format – and England looked in decent shape when they did get on the field against Pakistan – but Buttler will be anxious for things to go their way on Saturday, if only to avoid further questions referencing the team’s disastrous ODI World Cup defence last year.
Australia, under the laidback leadership of Mitchell Marsh would love nothing more than to add to the English sense of jeopardy – having helped bundle them out of the tournament in India on the way to taking the crown. Their head to head record is less impressive in T20 however, with England having won six of the last seven completed encounters, as well as that 2010 final.
Despite a wobble with the bat, Australia avoided mishap against Oman earlier in the week, the experience of David Warner and Marcus Stoinis shining through in difficult batting conditions. Surfaces in the Caribbean – not to mention those games staged in the USA – have already had teams scratching their heads; rather than the “slug-fest” England had prepared for, following a high-scoring tour of the Caribbean in December, it looks as if boxing smart may be the way to go.
Speaking of Warner, this could be the last time he faces up against England in national colours – and another match-winning contribution would likely reduce the chances of them meeting again in the knockouts. On the other side of the card is Jofra Archer, fresh from an emotional maiden outing at Kensington Oval and ready to take on Australia for the first time in any format since 2020. Can Mark Wood fire up England’s campaign, as he did during last summer’s Ashes? Will Pat Cummins be back to harass the old enemy once again? Seconds out, it’s almost time to rumble.
Cummins is set to return after being rested for the Oman game, which saw Mitchell Starc leave the field with cramp. Starc is understood to be fine and could keep his place – which would likely see Nathan Ellis miss out. Marsh is still not fit to bowl, with Australia likely to continue with the allrounder combination of Stoinis and Maxwell to give them cover.
Australia (probable XI): David Warner, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh (capt), Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Josh Inglis (wk), Tim David, Pat Cummins, Nathan Ellis/Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
The one change England may consider is Reece Topley coming in for Wood, with the expectation that there will be some rotation among the seamers through the course of the tournament.
England (probable XI): Phil Salt, Jos Buttler (capt & wk), Will Jacks, Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Chris Jordan, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Reece Topley/Mark Wood
[Cricinfo]
Once is coincidence, twice is a clue, and three times is proof.
To paraphrase Agatha Christie, that is the narrative around South Africa’s meeting with Netherlands at this T20 World Cup.
The Dutch beat South Africa at the 2022 tournament and ended their semi-final hopes in a match where South Africa appeared to be sleep walking, and then beat them again at the 2023 ODI World Cup, where they exposed South Africa’s vulnerability in the chase. If they to do the treble, not only will Netherlands take the lead in Group D, but they will offer conclusive evidence of the threat they pose to Full Members, especially South Africa.
Of course, it will take some doing after South Africa’s opening performance against Sri Lanka, where they reduced their opposition to their lowest T20I total and chased it down in fairly straightforward fashion thanks to the most stable middle-order of their white-ball era. In Aiden Markram, Tristan Stubbs, Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller, South Africa have bankers and big-hitters and, for this match, they also have the advantage of experience. They’ve already played at Eisenhower Park, and have first-hand knowledge that run-scoring doesn’t come easily;Klassen said they are prepared to use their “cricket brains” and play “smarter cricket”.
But the conditions could be good news for Netherlands, who are not naturally a line-up of big hitters and build their innings on a foundation of turning ones into twos. In other words, they tend to take a slightly more conservative approach to batting, which may work well here, but they’ll be wary of the uneven bounce of the surface and will have to come up with plans to counterattack especially against South Africa’s seamers. Their own bowlers were exemplary in Dallas and will look to build on that performance against a line-up that will likely be more proactive than Nepal’s, but who they have managed to keep quiet not once, but twice in the past. Third time’s the charm, they say.
Anrich Nortje’s stunning return to form against Sri Lanka means South Africa may not have to tinker with the bowling combination, and Gerald Coetzee and Tabraiz Shamsi may have to wait their turns to get a game. The batting line-up should be unchanged, with no space for Ryan Rickelton yet.
South Africa: Quinton de Kock (wk), Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markam, Tristan Stubbs, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), David Miller, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Ottneil Baartman, Anrich Nortje
Conditions in New York may tempt Netherlands to include an extra seamer and they have Kyle Klein in their squad. But it could come at the expense of a shortened batting line-up and they may not want to risk that.
Netherlands: Michael Levitt, Max O’Dowd, Vikramjit Singh, Sybrand Engelbrecht, Scott Edwards (capt, wk), Bas de Leede, Teja Nidamanuru, Logan van Beek, Tim Pringle, Paul van Meekeren, Vivian Kingma
[Cricinfo]
Nuwan Thushara’s last over brought Sri Lanka screaming back into the match,as he first bowled Rishad Hossain, and then nailed Taskin Ahmed in front of the stumps with a pinpoint swinging yorker. This left Bangladesh eight wickets down, with 12 runs still to get.
However, the experienced Mahmudullah was at the crease for Bangladesh, and despite some further nervy moments, pushed Bangladesh across the line off the last ball of the 19th over.
But this was a match chiefly decided by Bangladesh’s own outstanding bowling. Mustafizur Rahman was the best among them, using shorter lengths and his cutters efficiently, to claim figures of 3 for 17. Rishad Hossain’s three-for through the middle overs also kept Sri Lanka quiet.
Mustafizur was instrumental in Sri Lanka’s downward spiral through the middle overs, which culminated in a crash-and-burn end. Ultimately, their inability to find boundaries, or even rotate strike against good Bangladesh bowling resulted in their downfall. A score of 125 for 9 always seemed poor on a decent pitch, even if their bowlers made a match of it in the end.
Brief scores:
Bangladesh 125 for 8 in 19 overs (Towhid Hridoy 40, Litton Das 36; Dhanajaya de Silva 1-11, Nuwan Thushara 4-18, Wanidu Hasaranga 2-32, Matheesha Pathirana 1-27) beat Sri Lanka124 for 9 in 20 overs (Pathum Nissanka 47, Dhananjaya de Silva 21; Tanzim Hasan Sakib 1-24, Taskin Ahmed 2-25, Mustafizur Rahman 3-17, Rishad Hossain 3-22) by two wickets
[Cricinfo]
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