In this opening article for the year 1999, I wish to explain some of the aspects very briefly, that you should bear in mind in reaching the top as a promising cricketer and especially as a batsman.
Taking pains over the smallest detail was the key that opened the door to their greatness. This is crystal clear, when you analyse and study the great batsmen in the history of the game, like Sir Don Bradman, Sir Garfield Sobers, Sir Frank Worrel, Sir Leonard Hutton, Neil Harvey, Alan Border, Dennis Compton, Sunil Gavaskar, to name a few.
In cricket, a batsman can be beaten either on the air or off the ground. Remember, after all a batsman has just one chance.There are eleven players vying to bring about his downfall. To play any stroke successfully, the batsman must look at, find, and then continue to watch the ball. In a split of a second, he must decide what is the correct stroke to play it. He must make his body play that stroke correctly. In all stroke play the position and the headiness of the head is vital. Half the battle is won, if your head moves into and stays in the right position.
Through experience, I am aware that although you think that to watch the ball is easy, it is not so. The most important of all is to set your mind to it. To build up the habit of watching every ball throughout an innings means very very hard work. You can achieve this only by learning to concentrate your mind on batting. If you learn to meet it, not only in cricket, but in life too it will definitely help you.
One of the best examples of concentration that I have recently witnessed in batting came from no other lesser person than our own Aravinda de Silva, champion batsman of the world, when I was commentating in the Wills World Cup 1996 finals at Gadafi Stadium, Lahore, Pakistan. For the second successive encounter, the feared Sri Lankan openers, Sanath and Kalu, were dismissed Sri Lanka 23 for 2.
De Silva and Gurusinha, with sheer determination and concentration, putting the country before self, gave everything they had and repaired the innings. Everything was correct and controlled. They never panicked and took on the Australians ball by ball. It was Test match special at an accelerated pace. Aravinda de Silva stroked the ball through the off side, on side, forward and square and behind. Power of concentration was at its best. Everyone of De Silva's 14 boundaries was a gem, in his epic unbeaten century in the World Cup 1996. This innings I will cherish for my lifetime.
The concentration of Aravinda de Silva and skipper Arjuna Ranatunga later steered the team to victory sedately and Sri Lanka were worthy world champions.
When you are batting, to decide correctly what stroke to play to any particular ball is partly a matter of ``instinct'' or in cricket jargon ``ball sense''.
As you are aware, if your confidence falls, your thinking changes, and your concentration, to cope with pressure is affected. In short, if concentration is poor, you will lose confidence and will definitely handle the pressure badly.
Remember, in cricket or in any other game or in your life, concentration is the most important and vital factor in performance. :Janashakthi Insurance cover for umpires
A cricket umpire is a man who devotes his leisure time to enabling twenty two other men enjoy themselves. I feel that he does a thankless and rewardless job. He is sure to displease some one, but bravely walks on. He must be thorough in the Laws of the Game and act as jury and judge for both prosecution and defence. A golden rule is that he has to be impartial. In short without him (umpire) the game of cricket will not survive.
A bouquet should be paid to Janashakthi Life Insurance Company in providing a sponsorship package and offering an accidental insurance cover for each umpire ranging from Rs. 50,000 to 100,000 to the Association of Cricket Umpires. By this, more than one hundred umpires from all grades will be benefited.
For the past fifty five years Sri Lankan umpires never got a sponsorship package of this nature. It was something long overdue to them.
Special mention must be made of the dynamic President of the Umpires Association Mr. Lakshman Kiriella, an Old Royalist, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Mr. Chandra Schaffter and Old Thomian, Managing Director of Janashakthi in initiating a scheme of this nature for umpires who richly deserve it.