Sri Lanka's fan base has extended beyond the shores of Sri Lanka. Gone are the days when Sri Lankan Cricket was only followed by it's die hard fan base on the Island. With Youtube and other online video hosts portraying the Islanders talent more and more youngster from various other nations are showing interest in Lanka cricket, not to mention the number of Americans following the Lions these days. My videos have a collective view count of over 1.5 Million, Youtube is taking Cricket to the the average American household, something even the ICC has failed to do.
The Lions' brand of cricket is the key to it's following. Sri Lanka have always been known for their aggressive and positive approach to Cricket, The Sri Lankan brand of Cricket.
Sri Lanka 246 and 3 for 247 (Sangakkara 109*, Atapattu 80) need a further 260 runs to beat Australia 5 for 542 dec and 2 for 210 dec (Jaques 68, Ponting 53*)
Munasinghe was given a brief run in the one-day side and, despite not earning further representative honours, he did not let the team down. Munasinghe had the ability to bowl a consistent line and length and thus maintained an impressive economy rate in his limited matches. A constant figure in representative sides, he played numerous matches against touring sides before being selected for the 1995-96 tour of Australia. His best performance came at the MCG when he ran through the Australian top order taking 3 for 30, in the process setting up victory for Sri Lanka. Following the conclusion of the World Series he was not selected for the 1996 World Cup and drifted from the international scene. - Cricinfo.
An interview with Sunila Abeysekera on prospects for war and peace in Sri Lanka in 2008. For related story, please visit Groundviews - http://www.groundviews.org/2008/01/02/looking-back-looking-forward-a-brief-chat-with-hrw-human-rights-defender-award-winner-sunila-abeysekera-on-war-and-peace-in-sri-lanka/#more-684
England 351 and 48 for 0 (Vaughan 28*, Cook 13*) trail Sri Lanka 548 for 9 dec (M Jayawardene 195, Vandort 138, P Jayawardene 79, Sidebottom 3-100, Harmison 3-111) by 149 runs
England 281 and 9 for 1 (Vaughan 1*, Anderson 4*) need 341 more runs to beat Sri Lanka 188 and 442 for 8 (Sangakkara 152, Jayasuriya 78, M Jayawardene 65, Panesar 3-132)
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Sri Lanka 188 and 167 for 2 (Jayasuriya 78, Sangakkara 30*, M Jayawardene 0*) lead England 281 (Bell 83, Collingwood 45, Muralitharan 6-55) by 74 runs.
Muttiah Muralitharan moved level with Shane Warne on 708 wickets as he bowled Sri Lanka back into the first Test at Kandy. He claimed the first four England batsmen to fall on the second day as they lost 5 for 78 and drew level with Warne when he removed Ravi Bopara. But he was forced to wait for his crowning moment as rain, which had threatened during the morning, moved across the ground and wiped out the final three hours of play.
Upul Tharanga & Kumar Sangakarra pile on the runs as Sri Lanka bat england out of the game. Sri Lanka went on to bowl out england and win the Test match in under 5 days. Sri lanka tie the series 1-1
In the build-up to this Test, playing in Sri Lanka has been described as one of the game's toughest challenges and England responded with an outstanding bowling performance on the opening day at Kandy. Matthew Hoggard took four wickets in 25 balls during the morning session as Sri Lanka hit the depths of 42 for 5, then Monty Panesar chipped in with three after a partial resurrection from Kumar Sangakkara and Prasanna Jayawardene who added 106 for the sixth wicket to lift them to 188.
But England couldn't finish with their full card intact after facing 17 overs. Alastair Cook went third ball, planting his front foot across the line to Chaminda Vaas, using his 100 Tests worth of experience with the new ball as Hoggard did so successfully. Michael Vaughan could have gone, too, but Asad Rauf gave him the benefit of very little doubt against Lasith Malinga. There were three overs from Muttiah Muralitharan; that's a battle that will unfold on Sunday.
(Description courtesy Cricinfo)
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