Sachithra Perera of Ananda first schoolboy to take 100 wickets this season

by Chris DHAMBARAGE

CRICKET: Eighteen-year-old leg spinner Sachithra Perera of Ananda College is the latest sensation to emerge from the current inter-school cricket season as a real future prospect for the country.

Last week this promising right-arm spinner became the first schoolboy cricketer to capture one hundred wickets in the current inter-school cricket season. He achieved this unique milestone during the previous match against St. Joseph's College where he returned figures of five-wickets for 40 in the second innings.

This also marked his 14th five-wicket haul from the 15 matches he has played in the current inter school cricket season which is another piece of achievement.

He came into the limelight last year and grew in confidence to become one of the top match winners in the Ananda College cricket team.

He was among the coloursmen at the end of the second year and now he has turned out to be a senior player in the present outfit.

The great amount of damage he has done to the opposition is quite amazing whether he is performing at home, away or at a neutral venue. It was at the SSC ground in Maitland Place that he produced one of his best performances against their traditional rivals Nalanda College last year.

Sachithra Perera created history by returning the best bowling figures in the Battle of the Maroons limited-overs series between the two schools as Ananda College cruised to a 39 run victory in their 36th annual encounter.

His excellent figures of six wickets for 36 runs from 9.2 overs will always be remembered as an all time best performance by an Anandian which will be quite difficult to emulate. He went on to win the best bowlers award and the Man of the Match award in that memorable outing.

His technique of delivering the ball with a quick high arm bowling action is what makes him special. He had a very good run of success at junior level before he reached the climax with an outstanding performance in the Provincial Tournaments where he captured a total of 28 wickets from just five outings while representing the Western Province.

This fine performance brought a new dimension to the career of Sachithra Perera as he was acclaimed by his provincial coach Rohitha Perera. Thereafter he was able to shift to Ananda Mawatha from which point he really began to impress in First Eleven cricket under the guidance of Lucky Rogers Fernando. From a humble beginning to become a leading wicket taker he has travelled a long journey and is looking forward towards further extending his dominance on the field.

His coach Lucky Rogers Fernando praised the efforts of Sachithra Perera who has the task of bowling along with some of the other top bowlers in the side. But because of his accuracy and consistency he has been able to pick up early wickets a feature in his style of bowling.

As a result, Sachithra Perera does not need any long spells to make an impact and within a time frame of eight to nine overs he is able to create a huge damage on the opposite side.

No wonder Ananda College have enjoyed another fantastic inter-school cricket season and on all those occasions Sachithra Perera has played a big hand in spearheading the way through some splendid bowling performances.

Even then the performance against Dharmapala MV, Pannipitiya was quite special for Sachithra Perera who took a match-bag of eleven wickets to lead his team towards a convincing outright victory.

In addition he has been instrumental in guiding the Anandians towards victory against St. Benedict's College, Richmond College Galle, St. Sylvester's College Kandy and Dharmasoka College Ambalangoda.

How he has fared so far in the current season:

2 for 18 and 2 for 18 v St. Benedict's College

6 for 32 and 5 for 20 v Richmond College Galle

7 for 75 v D. S. Senanayake College

5 for 65 v Maliyadeva

6 for 24 v Revata MMV Balapitiya

4 for 34 and 3 for 48 v St. Sylvester's College Kandy

5 for 24 and 5 for 31 v Dharmasoka College Ambalangoda

6 for 20 and 5 for 45 v Dharmapala MV Pannipitiya

6 for 94 v St. Peter's College

1 for 46 v S. Thomas' College Mount Lavinia

6 for 68 and 2 for 71 v Royal College

2 for 14 and 5 for 42 v Dharmaraja College Kandy

3 for 54 and 4 for 40 v St. Sebastian's College Moratuwa

0 for 13 and 7 for 29 v Joseph Vaz College Wennappuwa

2 for 46 and 5 for 40 v St. Joseph's College

[The fact file]

Full name: Sachithra Sahan Mihiran Perera

Batting style: Right hand bat

Bowling style: Right arm leg spin

Date of birth: March 31, 1992

Place of birth: Colombo

Age: 18 years

Parents: A. K. Perera, Nalani Egodahewa

Major teams: Ananda College, President's College, Western Province

Class: Grade 13

Subjects: Commerce

Achievements: 55 wickets in 2008, 78 wickets in 2009

Landmarks: Best bowler and Man of the Match v Nalanda 2009

Favourite cricketer: Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne