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Chameera ruled out of match against Netherlands

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Dushmantha Chameera has been ruled out of Sri Lanka’s final Group A match against Netherlands, a match they will almost certainly need to win in order to qualify for the Super 12s stage of the World Cup.
Chameera claimed 3 for 15 in a thumping win over UAE that has increased Sri Lanka’s chances of progression, but was unable to finish his spell after pulling up with a calf injury. It was later confirmed to ESPNcricinfo by Professor Arjuna de Silva, who oversees Sri Lanka’s medical operations, that Chameera would miss the Netherlands game, with his participation in the rest of the tournament in doubt.

There are also concerns over Danushka Gunathilaka, who missed the UAE game, and Pramod Madushan, with both due to go for scans on hamstring injuries, although Sri Lanka’s medical team are hopeful the latter’s is not too serious.

The loss of Chameera and, potentially, Madushan is a blow after Sri Lanka’s bowlers dominated the match against UAE, dismissing the opposition for 73 inside 18 overs. There remains concerns over the side’s batting, after they collapsed from 117 for 3 in the 15th over to only post 152 for 8.

Having also put up a poor batting performance against Namibia, Sri Lanka’s middle order go into the last match of the qualifying stage significantly short of runs. For coach Chris Silverwood, this may have something to do with the weather, as temperatures have frequently dipped into the low teens in Geelong over the past two weeks.

“The temperatures we’re experiencing, the boys are not used to,” Silverwood said. “It’s certainly not Colombo. Even I’m cold, a little bit. You can’t help it. The preparation and facilities we were given having arrived early, were superb. The boys have prepped the best we possibly can. We had a good camp in Kandy before we got on an airplane and came here. We’ve made the best of what we’ve had really.”

The bowlers, at least, put in a complete performance on Tuesday. Seamers Chameera and Madushan decked the top order, before the spinners ripped out UAE’s middle- and lower-order batters.

“I think we adjusted pretty well today,” Silverwood said. “In the first game we didn’t read the conditions particularly well, and we certainly didn’t grasp them. We’re not hiding from that. That’s something that we spoke about in the debrief quite honestly.

“They’ve faced facts and and come out today, and applied themselves much better. The track was a little bit slow. We saw that if the bowlers bang it in hard, it’s very difficult to get them away. So we have to be patient, we have to build innings, and for the majority of today we did that.”

Sri Lanka’s top three also provided a good platform at the start of the match. Opener Pathum Nissanka was Sri Lanka’s best performer on the batting front, scoring one more run (74 off 60) than UAE’s entire team did. He progressed in a measured fashion through the early overs, before striking boundaries towards the death to raise his strike rate, on a difficult surface.

“Pathum at the top of the order played a real match-winning innings. He should be very proud of himself for what he’s done, helping the team get across the line.”
(espncricinfo.com)
(Except for the headline, this story, originally published by espncricinfo.com has not been edited by SLM staff)

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Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain close airspaces

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Iran has launched missiles at a US airbase in Qatar in response to strikes on its nuclear sites on Saturday.

Qatar confirms the attack on the US-run Al Udeid base, calling it a “flagrant violation” and says it reserves the right to respond directly.

The country has temporarily closed its airspace and US and UK citizens have been advised to shelter in place.

Meanwhile, Kuwait and Bahrain have also closed their respective airspaces.

(Agencies)

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China offers openness to all South Asian countries – Kusal Perera (Video)

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The 9th China-South Asia Expo, which opened on June 19 in Kunming, China, will conclude tomorrow (June 24).

This year’s event held under the theme “Solidarity and Coordination for Common Development, has attracted over 1,400 companies from 54 countries and regions, with Sri Lanka as the Guest of Honour country and Thailand as the special partner nation.

China-Sri Lanka bilateral trade reached a record high of USD 5.36 billion in 2024, representing a 13.4% year-on-year increase. This makes Sri Lanka China’s fastest-growing trade partner in South Asia.

The Sri Lankan pavilion was officially declared open by Sri Lanka’s Minister of Trade and Commerce – Wasantha Samarasinghe and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Employment – Arun Hemachandra, who jointly led the country’s high-level delegation to the prestigious regional event.

CGTN’s Ms. Li Qiuyuan spoke with Mr. Kusal Perera, a political analyst and writer for ‘Sri Lanka Mirror’, about his expectations for the expo.

Speaking, Mr. Perera said that Sri Lanka needs to see how the ‘export basket’ can be diversified from the traditional export goods such as tea, in order to make the most of this platform to boost bilateral trade and engagement with China.

When asked which emerging areas such as energy transformation, digital economy and low carbon development seem to be the most promising for the island nation, Mr. Perera highlighted the importance of a combination of energy, technology and environment. “But in the process, we also have to have our national economy planned to accommodate all that,” he emphasised, adding that it will be a long process for Sri Lanka.

He further commented : “I see China opening up instead of getting into protectionism like Europe. It’s basically the second largest economy in the world… still expanding… still improving… still developing…”

China’s economic openness for all South Asian countries is a huge opportunity in a global economy that now retreats with regulated and protected markets. Protectionism would not be a catalyst for economic growth. We in South Asia have to be open too. China is already open and its economy is growing on global trade. It’s their openness that has taken them everywhere” he adds.

(Video : CGTN)

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Fresh probe into Shiranthi’s bank account

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Deputy Minister of Public Security and Parliamentary Affairs – Attorney-at-Law Sunil Watagala has informed Parliament that a renewed investigation is underway into a fraudulent bank account allegedly maintained by Shiranthi Rajapaksa, wife of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

He stated that a fake account titled ‘Siriliya Saviya’ had been opened in her name and that the mandate form related to the ‘Siriliya’ Organization’s bank accounts had been fraudulently removed from the bank.

The Minister further revealed : 

The account, now suspended, was opened on November 14, 2006, at the People’s Bank, Suduwella Branch, Darley Road, Colombo 10, under account number 143/1/001/4/6235069. Shiranthi Rajapaksa is listed as the chairperson of the account, with Kalyani Dissanayake as secretary and Nirosha Jeevani as treasurer.

The account currently holds a balance of Rs.43 million. Records indicate that Rs. 82,900,088 had been deposited on 88 occasions, while Rs.39,015,656 had been withdrawn on 129 occasions. Additionally, a fixed deposit of Rs.10 million had been opened under the name ‘Siriliya’.

The Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) has resumed investigations into the matter.

Deputy Minister also mentioned several other questionable financial transactions involving the Rajapaksa family, such as ;

  • Rs.152 million allegedly obtained by CSN (Carlton Sports Network) from the Treasury.
  • Rs.35 million obtained by Gotabaya Rajapaksa from the Urban Development Authority to build a memorial for his parents.
  • Rs.208 million used by Basil Rajapaksa to purchase a house in Malwana.

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