Sanka Ramesh expected to improve with experience

by Ranjan ANANDAPPA

Observer-Mobitel Outstation Schoolboy Cricketer with one more year to go at Moratu Vidyalaya, the winner of the Observer/Mobitel Schoolboy Cricketer of the year Outstation 2011 Sanka Ramesh is expected to do better things next year as the captain of his school cricket team.

Ramesh, missed the opportunity to represent the Sri Lanka Schools team by a whisker, but he hopes to make a comeback with a couple of junior tours coming up in the near future. Out of these tours he considers the most important one as the 2012 Under-19 World Cup Cricket Tournament which is scheduled to take place in Australia next August.

He first played Under 17 cricket for De Soysa MV at Moratuwa, prior to being drafted to Moratu Vidyalaya where he played 1st XI cricket. At De Soysa MV during his primary days his one passion was the game of cricket. After joining Moratu MV he developed his skills and was good enough to find a place in the first XI team.

While at De Soysa MV, he was under the guidance of coach Sabu Weerasinghe and the Master-in-Charge Hafi. The Weerasinghe–Hafi combination put him on the right track with the right rudiments of the game. After joining Moratu MV, Ramesh went one step further when he became an important member in the Moratu MV side.

At Moratu MV, he was coached by Prasanna Dissanayake. The encouragement given by the Master-In-Charge of Cricket Udaya Geeganage, Lakmal Sir and Ruvini Tharanga, a lady teacher who is also involved in cricket, has inspired him to perform well.

He has been a regular member of the SSC Under 23 side and has taken over 30 wickets in the tournament last year, but he had to skip some matches this season due to the GCE (A/L) examination.

Sanka Ramesh made a strong claim for the title that he won at the contest by scoring 1,270 runs and bagging over 107 wickets during the concluded school cricket season. He has a double hundred (213) against Zahira College and two centuries 100 against St.Sebastian’s College, Moratuwa and 123 against St.Sylvester’s College, Kandy. His right-arm leg-spin bowling has given him two impressive match bags of 10 wickets against St.Sebastian’s Moratuwa and 12 wickets against Royal, Panadura.

While thanking the Sunday Observer/Mobitel contest for fostering young talent for the future, he concluded saying that it was sheer hard work and dedication that brought him the trophy.