Let’s bring commitment and professionalism to our cricket This is an open letter to the Chairman, Cricket Board: I am just completing 70 years of my life and have been a cricket player from the age of 11. I was not selected to play for Ceylon but I have seen every moment of development of [...]

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Let’s bring commitment and professionalism to our cricket

This is an open letter to the Chairman, Cricket Board:

I am just completing 70 years of my life and have been a cricket player from the age of 11. I was not selected to play for Ceylon but I have seen every moment of development of cricket in Sri Lanka. I retired as a General Manager of one of the Blue Chip companies in the country.

I give below a few suggestions to bring discipline to the team.

1.The cricketers are professionals who are highly paid.

In private companies there are highly paid managers , executives who take responsibilty for the growth of the company. At the end of the year we do a personal appraisal and arrive at the percentage performance.

If they do not come to the expected level, their bonus is reduced.

Further when they do not perform on their daily routines due to their negligence, (absence , poor performance due to irresponsible acts at work, bad behaviour ) show cause letters are issued and pay cuts are introduced.

My question….do you have a year-end performance appraisals system?

2. What I see in the cricketers, is that they are sure of their match fee even if they do not perform.

So they have lost commitment.

Look at the last two 20/20 matches in India.

Do you think they were committed? Did you see them as professionals? No they were like a school Under 12 team.

Are you thinking of deducting their match fee?

3. Don’ t blame the coach. “You can take an ass to the water but you cannot make it to drink”

Only way is to keep the ass without water for 10 days. Then the ass will drink.

4. Captaincy is performance, intelligence, staff handling, commitment, ability to analyze situations..

Was it there at the India tour ?

Here again I am not blaming the Captain but the people who appointed him.

Mr.Chairman, take some stern action quickly, otherwise we will continue to have the cricketers having their own way but enjoying the money they receive.

Take your decisions the way we do in our private companies.

Don’t let people who have never held a bat in their life appoint the teams.

Produce a team with commitment and show the world that, even if we lose we give a fight professionally.

C.Peiris   Via email


‘Reign of terror’ in our universities

Ragging goes on unabated, unhindered
In our universities; the echelons of higher learning
It is endemic in the University system
The sole purpose in this exercise
is to bridge the gap of social contact

This traditional exercise
Was confined to the precincts of the campus
But, it has now extended
beyond the boundaries of the halls of fame
Setting a precedent in the world

Simple, harmless ragging
converted to drastic methods being used
for harassment of freshers
by the seniors affected by inferiority complex
to fall in line with their thinking
to establish social equality and get rid of inferiority
which resulted in deaths
Suicide, loss of limbs and paralysis for life
To be viewed as a part of youth’s unrest in society

The events that took place
in an isolated rented house of terror recently
Were beyond one’s comprehension
Young damsels were subjected to heinous sex activities
Sex perverts, sadistic behaviour merged depicting brutal sex orgies
Vulgarity of the highest order prevailed
unworthy of varsity students

The guilty deserve strict disciplinary action
To maintain the honour and esteem of the varsities
Tradition compels the victims to keep stoic silence on the happenings
Trauma of those who bore the brunt
in the house of terror will continue to suffer silently
Robespierre would have echoed
it is a ‘reign of terror’.

Disgusted Citizen


They are handcuffed for a reason, don’t make them heroes

These few lines are to pen my thoughts on the behaviour of politicians who are brought to book. I do not know why, the chosen people, the people in authority set a bad example to the people. I do not think that it’s a good thing for them to exhibit their handcuffed hands, raising them up for the whole world to see.  I wonder whether they forget that it’s one of the worst things that could happen to any human being or is it that it’s a fashion today? They should learn a lesson from hundreds of innocent people who when they are sentenced to jail, for no wrongdoing of their own would be dying a hundred times from shame.

Why aren’t the politicians ashamed?

So, media, please be careful not to give much space to such pictures and attract the attention of the people, especially the youth. This may make them their heroes.

(Mrs.) L.M.   Hendala


It’s not the attire that makes a true leader

President Gotabaya Rajapksa’s simplicity and choice of attire at the opening of Parliament, which was followed by a policy statement laid to rest many people’s mistaken belief that a person should be judged by his attire and not by the stuff he is made of, like his strong character, abilities, vision, ideas, leadership etc.

As we have seen in the past, many people were worried about what a politician wore rather than his/her capabilities. People cast sarcastic comments when politicians opted for western attire and some politicians changed their attire to please the people and come to power.

All such outdated and unwanted pride should be buried forever. This is what the President did. Let’s choose our political leaders not by what they wear but by what they are made of – their education, abilities, vision and their charismatic abilities. They should be leaders who can make this country a better place.

Throughout the Presidential campaign, President Rajapaksa proved that what we need is people who can work and not people who can only talk.

B. Joseph   Wattala


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