Decade of dominance for Yarragon star
It may be small, but it has produced some of the best cricketers the world has ever seen with the likes of Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and Lasith Malinga all taking to the big stage, and one local cricketer was right alongside them to see it happen.
Yarragon Cricket Club captain Gamini Kumara has this season passed WDCA legend David Sharpe as the all-time leading run scorer, amassing 5846 division one runs at an average of 56.21.
Those who watch him shouldn’t be surprised. His silky stroke play and tactical nouse is something that has continued to be shaped and sharpened since he first saw the game.
It all began in Horana, where he grew up with a bat and ball in his hand and attended Sripalle College in his hometown.
“First, I was playing soft ball cricket, like backyard cricket, at school and after school all the way into the night. Sometimes on the road, or anywhere we could find. Then I really wanted to play hard ball cricket, so I went to the school cricket team and started playing at 13years-old” he said.
Kumara showed plenty of promise as he continued to grow as a player. At 16 he was playing for his schools under 19 side, scoring 1200 runs for the age group above his own, showing his growing class and talent as a batsman.
There was an under 17 tour to Pakistan for the Asian Cup, however, after performing well he wasn’t selected, and he saw a pattern developing.
“I performed well, but they didn’t pick me, so I thought, ok, they aren’t picking many players from here, they are mainly picking from the Columbo area, so I thought I had to go to that area.”
He moved to Columbo to one of the biggest schools in Sri Lanka, where Mahela Jayawardene and many other international cricketers attended for a better chance at a cricketing career.
“I thought if I go there, I can have a chance to play under 19s for Sri Lanka, so I decided to go there for a better chance” he said.
After performing well, Kumara was selected to the 2002 Under 19 Cricket World Cup for Sri Lanka.
Upon returning from the World Cup in New Zealand, Kumara began to play premier cricket for the Columbo Cricket Club from 2003 onwards, but realised he wasn’t going to go any further in Sri Lanka, so instead, headed to England for the summer.
It still wasn’t what Kumara was looking for however, so in 2010 he spoke with his friend, Lasitha Amarasooriya, who was playing for Western Park at the time and asked him if there was a club he could play for here in Australia.
“There were a lot of good players, Malinga, Kulesekera, they all played where I was, so I decided to come here to Australia. I asked Lasitha if there was a club around and he said Yarragon, so I picked them.”
Once Kumara had decided on a club, the wheels were in motion and he came out for his first Australian summer in 2010/11. He credits Yarragon secretary Karen Green for helping him make the move happen.
“She’s the one who did all the paperwork to allow me to come, they looked after me really well,” he explained.
After spending the first three seasons as a fly in player for the summer, Kumara now calls Australia home and his family (wife Judy and daughters Olivia and Rockshana) have joined him. There were some adjustments he had to make living in a new country.
“The biggest change was playing both turf and synthetic. On turf, the bowlers have a bit more of a chance, but synthetic once you settle, it’s really friendly for batting, which for me is good,” he laughed.
Now known as one of the most prolific batsman in WDCA history, Kumara said that every year he sets himself a goal, to score 1000 runs a season. In 2014/15, he averaged a mammoth 93.1, scoring 745 runs in his 13 innings, one of his best seasons here so far.
“Each year I want to pass 1000 runs, that year I fell just short with the combined run scoring, but each year I just want to do my best for the team.”
During the 2016/17 season, Kumara’s talent was really on show, as he led his team to victory in stunning fashion.
Coming in at 2/20, chasing a mammoth 309, he set to work on what was a quick outfield.
Before long, Kumara had 182* next to his name, as he walloped a ball to the fence with four balls remaining to win the game for Yarragon in a match that lives in folklore.
“That ground was really fast, I thought, after I’d hit a few fours, we can chase this, if we can pick the gap it’s four. I had a good partnership with Zaron Smith and Ishan Ratnayake who made a few runs too. Hitting the winning runs was awesome, chasing that total in 45 overs it was awesome”.
Yarragon president Jake Borsato said the impact Kumara has had on the club is difficult to quantify, because it stretches so far.
“In terms of on the field, to have a leader and a player who can grab a game by the scruff of the neck, it’s simply unprecedented. The amount of awareness and publicity he’s brought to our small country club is incredible, the amount of people who have heard of the Yarragon Cricket Club because of him is huge” he explained.
“Gamma is just an extremely humble, determined and driven person. He’s always about the team and if you look at some of his bigger scores, the reason he’s gone out is because the team needed to accelerate the run rate. He’s often sacrificing his own game for the benefit of the team.”
Kumara is well known for his batting ability, but his bowling is something that is severely underrated.
Borsato highlighted this, explaining that the way Kumara sets up his opponents, is mystifying to many who haven’t mastered the art.
“He might not be the quickest bowler anymore, but he knows the league inside and out and his ability to read the batsman is superb. The way he sets them up with certain balls to chip away at their weakness, he always eventually gets them” he said.
His team-first attitude shines through. Kumara explained that when he fails with the bat, he sees his bowling as a way he can contribute.
“It’s really all about doing my best for the team.”
Kumara said he loves to pass on his knowledge and experience through coaching.
“I obtained my level two coach ECB and once I finish cricket, I’ll get my certificate to do some coaching once I finish playing.”
Match replication is key when it comes to batting.
He has in his mind where fielders are during his net sessions, playing as if he’s out in the middle and is now helping to pass on this technique to others.
“I train as if I’m playing in a match. I don’t want to get out in the nets at all, lot of people hit the ball everywhere, but on match day there are fielders out in those areas, so what I’m doing in the nets, is what I’m doing in the middle” he said.
“He’s definitely learned how to pass on his immense skill and talent on to our team. If, for example, the average Yarragon cricketer is at step one or two, Gamma is at five, but he still knows how to pull back the layers and teach at that one on one level which has been outstanding for our club,” Borsato said.
Kumara has his sights set on bringing Yarragon its first WDCA title since 2010/11.
“We have some good talent, Lucas Kilday is a fantastic batsman, while Kurt Borsato is a good allrounder for our side and Chris McCallum is another talented player for us just to name a few” he said.
“The people at Yarragon have treated me really well, they’re really good people, that’s why I’m still at Yarragon and want to win the premiership for them this year, that’s the main thing.” he said.
Kumara has strung together another scintillating season for the Panthers.
In his seven innings so far, he’s amassed 635 runs, including five half centuries and one century at an average of 70.56 as his legend status continues to grow.
With the additions of Nuwan Perera and Lahiru Jayakody, Yarragon sit third on the table in division one.
The Panthers will face Ellinbank and Western Park in their final two games before the finals begin, with the side hoping to repeat the efforts of the triumphant 2010/11 season in 19/20.
There’s no doubt that heading towards the business end, the Panthers will look to ramp up their attack, with star captain Gamini Kumara leading the charge.