Sports

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) announced that all-rounder Dunith Wellalage will rejoin the squad in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) tomorrow (20), after attending the funeral of his late father.

Wellalage will be available for selection as Sri Lanka prepare to face Bangladesh in the Super Four opener of the Asia Cup 2025, the SLC said.

Suranga Wellalage, father of Dunith Wellalage, who is a former cricketer himself, passed away last night (18) at the age of 54, reportedly due to a sudden heart attack.

His passing occurred on the same day his son represented Sri Lanka in their Asia Cup Group B match against Afghanistan in Abu Dhabi.

Wellalage returned to the island this morning (19) following the sudden passing of his father, where he joined his grieving family.

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India’s Smriti Mandhana has once again risen to the top of the ICC Women’s ODI batting rankings.

It is reported that her exceptional performances in the recent series against Australia enabled her to reclaim the No. 1 position.

Previously, England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt held the top spot in the ICC Women’s ODI batting rankings.

Sri Lankan all-rounder Dunith Wellalage returned home this morning (September 19) following the sudden death of his father, Suranga Wellalage.

He flew from Abu Dhabi on Etihad Airways flight EY-392, arriving at Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) in Katunayake at 8:25 a.m., accompanied by an official from Sri Lanka Cricket. Wellalage completed airport formalities quickly and left immediately.

Suranga Wellalage, a former cricketer, passed away on September 18 at the age of 54 due to a sudden heart attack. His death came on the same day Dunith played for Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup Group B match against Afghanistan in Abu Dhabi.

Sri Lanka secured a convincing four-wicket victory against Hong Kong in their Asia Cup T20 encounter played today (15).

The Group B fixture was held in Dubai, and with this win Sri Lanka advanced to the top of the points table.

Chasing a target of 150 set by Hong Kong, Sri Lanka reached 153 for the loss of six wickets in 18.5 overs. Pathum Nissanka led the innings with a composed 68 runs, while Kusal Perera contributed 20 runs.

Having won the toss, Sri Lanka’s skipper Charith Asalanka elected to field first. Hong Kong concluded their allotted 20 overs at 149 for four. Their openers built an opening stand of 41 runs before Seshan Ali (23) was dismissed by Dushmantha Chameera.

Anshuman Rath and Nizakat Khan then consolidated the innings with a 61-run partnership for the third wicket. Rath scored 48, while Khan remained unbeaten on 52, guiding Hong Kong to a respectable total.

For Sri Lanka, Chameera claimed two wickets, with Wanindu Hasaranga and Dasun Shanaka taking one apiece.

Notably, this was the first-ever international encounter between Sri Lanka and Hong Kong in the cricketing arena.

Suranga Wellalage, father of Sri Lankan cricketer Dunith Wellalage, has passed away at the age of 54 following a sudden heart attack.

The news came on September 18, the same day Dunith played in Sri Lanka’s Asia Cup Group B match against Afghanistan in Abu Dhabi. Sri Lanka won the match by six wickets, but Dunith learned of his father’s death only after the game ended.

Dunith left Abu Dhabi early this morning with team manager Mahinda Halangoda to return to Colombo and be with his family. Head Coach Sanath Jayasuriya, emotional upon hearing the news, comforted the young all-rounder.

The Sri Lankan team, which had been celebrating their win, was left in shock and silence after the tragic news.

Sri Lanka will play their second match of the 2025 Asia Cup T20 tournament today against Hong Kong.

Sri Lanka defeated Afghanistan by 6 wickets on Thursday, September 18, to secure a place in the Super 4s of the Asia Cup 2025.

In the Group B match at Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi, Kusal Mendis scored 74 runs to help Sri Lanka chase down 170 in 18.4 overs. With this win, Sri Lanka topped Group B after winning all three matches.

Afghanistan, who needed a win to qualify, finished third in the group and were knocked out. Bangladesh, with two wins, joined Sri Lanka in the Super 4s.

Sri Lanka will now face Bangladesh in their first Super 4s match on Saturday, September 20, in Dubai.

From Group A, India and Pakistan have already qualified, but their final positions will be decided after India’s match against Oman on Friday, September 19. If India win, they will top Group A and face Pakistan on Sunday (Sept. 21), Bangladesh on Wednesday (Sept. 24), and Sri Lanka on Friday (Sept. 26).

For Sri Lanka, apart from Mendis’ batting, Nuwan Thushara starred with the ball, taking 4 wickets for 18 runs in 4 overs.

In the Asia Cup T20 match held tonight (14) in Dubai, India secured a comfortable 7-wicket victory over Pakistan. The match was part of Group ‘A’ of the tournament.

Batting first, Pakistan managed 127 runs for the loss of 9 wickets in their allotted 20 overs. In response, India chased down the target of 128, losing only 3 wickets, and achieved 131 runs in 16 overs (15.5), thereby completing a convincing win.

With this victory, India, having won both of their matches so far, maintains their lead at the top of the points table. This also marks India’s clean sweep in all three T20 encounters against Pakistan in the tournament.

The last time Pakistan defeated India in a T20 match was during the 2022 Asia Cup.

According to the latest T20 batting rankings released by the International Cricket Council (ICC), Sri Lanka’s opening batsman Pathum Nissanka has risen to the 6th position.

This advancement follows his half-century (68 runs) against the Hong Kong team in the Asia Cup cricket tournament. Prior to this performance, Nissanka had been ranked 7th in the T20 batting rankings.

He currently holds 751 ranking points, marking the highest points he has achieved in his T20 cricket career.

Meanwhile, Kusal Perera remains in the 9th position in these rankings.

At the top of the T20 batting rankings is India’s Abhishek Sharma with 884 points, followed by England’s Phil Salt in second place with 838 points. England’s Josh Butler holds the third position with 794 points.

At the 2025 World Athletics Championships held in Tokyo, Japan, Melissa Jefferson of the United States won the women’s 100m event.

She completed the race in 10.61 seconds.

Meanwhile, the men’s 100m title was claimed by Oblique Seville of Jamaica, who finished the race in 9.77 seconds.

The final match of the Asia Cup 2025 T20 ‘B’ Group between Sri Lanka and Afghanistan will take place tomorrow (18th) in Abu Dhabi. This is a crucial match to determine which teams will advance to the Super 4 stage from Group B.

Sri Lanka has won both of their matches so far, earning 4 points and securing a leading position on the points table. A victory tomorrow will allow them to qualify for the Super 4s undefeated. Even in the event of a loss, Sri Lanka can still remain in the tournament provided the margin of defeat does not exceed 71 runs or they are not left with fewer than 11.1 overs to chase the target (53 balls remaining).

Hong Kong, having lost all three of their matches, is already eliminated from the tournament.

Afghanistan’s chances of reaching the Super 4s depend on defeating Sri Lanka and surpassing Bangladesh based on net run rate. If Afghanistan loses, they are eliminated, and Bangladesh will qualify automatically.

Bangladesh’s Super 4 qualification will be confirmed if Afghanistan loses to Sri Lanka, as Bangladesh currently holds 4 points and can advance without any further challenge.

The outcome of the Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan match tomorrow will therefore also determine Bangladesh’s fate in Group B.

The Supreme Court (SC) on Thursday refused to urgently list a plea seeking cancellation of the cricket match between India and Pakistan in the upcoming Asia Cup.

The match is scheduled for September 14 at Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

A Bench comprising Justices J K Maheshwari and Vijay Bishnoi questioned the urgency of the petition. “What is the urgency? It's a match, let it be. Match is this Sunday, what can be done?” the Bench observed.

The counsel for the petitioners requested that the plea be heard on Friday, warning that it would become infructuous if not taken up before the game. The Bench, however, maintained, “Match is this Sunday? What can we do about that? Let it be. Match should go on.”

Petition highlights national concerns

The plea was filed by one Urvashi Jain and three other law students, who argued that holding a cricket match with Pakistan after the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor sends a message contrary to national dignity and public sentiment.

"Cricket between nations is meant to show harmony and friendship. But after the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor, when our people died and our soldiers risked everything, playing with Pakistan sent the opposite message that while our soldiers are sacrificing their lives, we are celebrating sports with the same country sheltering terrorists," the plea said.

It added that the match could hurt the sentiments of families of victims who lost their lives to Pakistani terrorists and added, “The dignity of the nation and security of citizens come before entertainment.”

'Match can be detrimental to national interests'

The petition also claimed that playing the match would be “detrimental to the national interests” and morale of the armed forces and the country.

The plea further noted that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) operates like “a nation within a nation” and is insensitive to national problems, calamities, and public sorrow. It highlighted that under the National Sports Governance Act, 2025, BCCI does not qualify as a National Sports Federation (NSF) and should be under the jurisdiction of the National Sports Board (NSB).

The petitioners emphasised that ongoing operations against terror bases in Pakistan and continuous infiltration in Kashmir make holding the match inappropriate. "Our armed forces have been carrying out day & night search operations fighting the infiltrators from Pakistan, our soldiers are sacrificing their lives and citizens too falling prey to the bullets of Pakistan-sponsored terrorists," it said.

Despite these concerns, the SC refused to entertain the request for an urgent hearing, allowing the India-Pakistan Asia Cup clash to go ahead as planned.

(lankaleader.lk)