Meanwhile, the respected 'Wisden Cricket Monthly' edited by Tim de Lisle has judged Aravinda de Silva the Best Batsman in the world according to the WCM Saffery Champness world rankings. Sachin Tendulkar drops down to No. 2 in the new look table. Aravinda becomes the fourth man and only the second Sri Lankan (Sanath Jayasuriya was world number one for a few months) to top the batting charts since its inception in December 1996. De Silva according to Widen began 1996-97 with 60 runs in six innings but then he had a sequence of seven centuries in seven tests. During this amazing time he became the first man to make two unbeaten hundreds in the same match and Sri Lanka set a world record for the highest Test score.
Writing elsewhere in the May issue of Wisden, Seyld Berry pays tribute to Sri Lanka's cricketers. Berry observes: ``Like Zimbabwe the Sri Lankans were cautions at first and fearful of being unable to justify their promotion to test status. Now they are trying to justify their status as World Cup holders. In between, their batting at best has been almost West Indian in its aggression and flair - from Roy Dias and Duleep Mendis to today's Sanath Jayasuriya and Aravinda de Silva.''
Plans are a foot to give the Sri Lankan cricketers a right royal welcome. The UK Representative Committee of the BCCSL led by the dashing Asitha Jayaweera have launched a massive island wide PR campaign. The ticket sales for the test match and the one day tournament are going well. The BCCSL UK committee have lobbied the British media, community organisations, British companies and associations who have links with Sri Lanka urging them to support the tour of the Sri Lankan cricketers.
Certainly Britons who enjoy the cricketing style of the world champions are set to support the tour. The first ever Sri Lanka Day is scheduled to be held on Sunday, July 19 in Buckhurst Hill, Essex, by the cricket loving English public, in aid of the BCCSL initiative to raise funds for buying sports equipment for needy children in the provincial areas. The Sri Lanka Day in Essex has generated enormous goodwill - British MPs and the High Commissioner of Sri Lanka will attend the function. The fifteen member Channa-Upuli dance Ensemble will perform in Essex. Sri Lanka's number one photographer Eshan Goonasekera will exhibit his stunning views of the island at the event in Buckhurst Hill, Essex.
Priya Peiris' cricket cassette - his tribute to the cricketers in English and Sinhala is also set to soar during the World Champions tour. Priya was a household name when he performed with the 'La Bambas' in the sixties and seventies. The baila cassette is making the rounds in London and British radio and television are hoping to play the songs during the UK tour of the world champions. Plans for the Dinner Dance at the Park Lane Hilton to honour the cricketers are going well - nearly 500 guests will attend. This will be the only social event of the tour.