My School Cricket Career, if any

Since, I am winding up this blog rants, it time for me to say Good Bye to CRICKET, too.

I was good in Softball Cricket.

I was regular member of the Ampitiya Team and we ended up as unofficial champions of Kandy beating Kingwood Boys.

We did not have a ground in Ampitiya to practice. Main Tar road was our practice ground. During off season paddy field was our play ground. 

I used to make my own bat with planks that anchor wooden shipping boxes.

My father hated cricket and old type of sports. But he used to admire championship (athletic) cups

He did not know our secret plans.

I love making and flying kites.

Next attraction was balloons made by Uncle Ferdinando.

All these acts made me a good physicist in real time.

It is strange, I ended becoming the Hockey Captain in my 4th year in the University.

I was not given a chance to play hockey by the sports master in school but he gave my place to his brother who was hopeless.

I invited the school team and beat them 14 nil in a friendly. I scored the last goal since 13 was considered a bad number to close my career in hockey.

I told him never think of coming back for a friendly  He ended up as a Principal close to our home in KANDY. 

I was told he passed away before I left CEYLON. 

Incidentally, he was related to my mother distantly.

Regarding our final match of the unofficial championship:

We scored 36 all out.

Our plan was to get them out under 30.

I told our captain we could do it but plan the strategy.

They were all out 31 and they gave us a mighty fight. 

I was the best fielder and I may have saved 10 runs and involved in 2 or 3 runouts of the opposition.

That was my last game and I never played for that team headed by a guy from St. Sylvester College.

Reasons are blurry. 

May be two or three reasons.

Dress code of the captain and his brother IVAN was dirty and unkempt.

I was the best dressed boy.

I wanted to keep the wicket but I was never given a chance.

Their English was putrid.

I was an all rounder by all accounts at that level.

Then, I joined Dharmaraja College where 

G. S. Ratnayake was a sensation.

40 balls for a century. 

T.B. Kehelgamuwa just gone overage for the school.

G. W. Sebanayake scored 182 against Nalanda.

Rest I cannot renumber except G. Mendis who entered university Engineering Faculty but never completed the university career.

At schools I was the "Pol Addiyar" of the class. I perfected the Neil Harvey stroke on the leg side.

The end result the softball lost within the first two overs I faced and I had to pay Rs. 5/= for the replacement. Worse part, I had to go to Tennis Club of Kandy and wait for hours to get a used ball. 

We never saw a new ball.

By the way, Rs. 5/= was a huge some those days.

Gopal the ground boy could not find the ball in the abyss down the ground.

 

Subsequently, I deliberately hit the ball to the wood so that I can go back to the classroom and tidy up the school work. I refused to pay for the replacement and that ended up my school cricket career.

I left home at 7.30AM and reached Ampitiya College by 8.00AM on foot to save 10 cents. This fee went upto 30 cents returning home from Dharmaraja Hill through Ampitiya college boundary. 

Half a cup of chickpeas was 15 cents. Only one guy spent money on chickpeas and the others saved the money as pocket money. 

A cream bun was 5 cents at Mendis Bakery. 

Salgadu Bakery was famous in KANDY.

Elephant House, White House, Devon, Chinese Hotel and Matara Bake House were popular in Kandy city.

There was an unsolved murder at the Chinese Hotel and was kept closed for many years. We used to go there to listen to English Music. 

Coin Jockey was the main attraction.

Toilets were hopeless.

There was a secret plot to oust me from the Class Team which I got to know 2 years after my full retirement from the university. I gathered all the names and addresses of my classmates and gave a call to confirm the facts and left the list with a guy from KANDY before leaving Ceylon. 

He is the one who told me there was a plot to stop me playing cricket which I did not realize, at that time.

Ajith Gannoruwa.

SAD

W??? Played for the school cricket team.

I thought I was no good in Cricket.

I told him I joined in to enter University and not to play Cricket. 

The teachers were the worst except Morris Perera. 

There were  guys and girls called M.D. Banda and Mr and Mrs. Samarasinghe who hated me. 

I challenged Bumiputra or Harischadra (he stole the copyright material of the University and piblished them as his own) who gave one lesson in chemistry over 3 months and the Rajanayagam guy who only knew how to draw amoeba.

The challenge was if I get pass the A Level none of them would continue to teach in any form. 

I kept that promise.

There is many more including Principal who was a relative of mine and Amaranayake who was the Vice Principle. Amare thrashed me until the Watahiriya pole (Gliricidia sepium) was in pieces for not taking part in cadetting. I never joined the march past.

I only took part in the final march past as the captain of my home/ house team.

I went to Diyrgalwas three time in junior cadetting at Ampitiya College. 

Last as the team captain and we were 3rd in the overall championship behind Ananda and Nalanda.

 

My intention was not to enter army.

However, I dreamed about becoming a airline pilot.

Panamaldeniya our School Inspector was the on who helped me to enter University.

Mr. Samaranayake helped me in Biochemistry practicals.

Mr. Viydyaratne who was doing his Teacher Training helped me in Botany and Zoology in Advanced Level.

How I manged practical in Botany and Zoology is a topic for another fay.

I stop here since the topic was on Cricket.