LANKA PREMIER LEAGUE
A resounding success
The 2020 Lanka Premier League (LPL) couldn’t have come at a better time for Sri Lanka. This is mainly due to the challenges the country has faced and uncertainty about whether the tournament will go ahead.
In fact, the LPL had gained a reputation for postponements and being a nonstarter for various reasons, so much so that the term ‘Lanka Postponed League’ was coined by some on social media.
In reality, the demands, the magnitude of the tournament and several roadblocks were too arduous to overcome with ease. But the fact that it overcame these problems and was conducted in a professional manner is nothing short of a miracle. The Minister of Youth and Sport, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), the rights holders and everyone involved should be commended a trillion times.
Without a doubt, the LPL brought a number of major positives. First and foremost, it sent a strong signal to the world that Sri Lanka can manage the COVID-19 crisis and organise an event of this calibre. Indeed, this effort may well have inspired confidence in potential visitors to Sri Lanka.
Secondly, the quality of the LPL was worldclass; and that it is now on the world cricket map will ensure greater interest and better player participation.
And thirdly, it afforded an opportunity for young Sri Lankan talent; the LPL enabled them to showcase their skills as Dhananjaya Lakshan did. The LPL also offered a chance for older players to gain much-needed experience in events such as this.
While the LPL produced many plusses, there’s one that deserves special mention – i.e. the Jaffna Stallions winning the championship and emergence of the young spinner Vijayakanth Viyaskanth.
This victory has generated much enthusiasm since many of the owners are originally from the north and their desire to develop cricket in the north has been strengthened.
It’s a no-brainer that young kids from the north who are desperate to find a sporting hero have found one to emulate. They can relate to Viyaskanth better and following the protracted civil conflict and suffering, the people of Jaffna now have something to celebrate.
It follows that their interest in cricket and desire to win have been boosted. The SLC should consider how it can make the most of this opportunity and motivate the available talent.
Digressing from the tournament itself, having played 23 games in one venue was an unenviable task – one that was managed magnificently. The International Venue Manager Godfrey Dabrera and his team must be commended too because if the pitches weren’t up to the mark and the cricket had been poor, the efforts of all the others would not have been recognised.
Runs were never an issue and the quality of the pitches was always remarkably topnotch. Considering the manner in which the inaugural LPL was played and concluded, one can only hope that the league will be better and bigger next time, with more sponsors and top player participation in the second scheduled for July-August.
The SLC will do well to understand the areas of concern such as match schedules, practice times, team gelling and more venues – they will make this event possibly second only to the Indian Premier League (IPL).
One other factor that should be considered is crowd participation. Though we are in times of the ‘new normal,’ the lack of fans was felt – and despite the artificial sound system, that vacuum wasn’t filled.
With these key lessons learned, it’s the hope of all cricket lovers that the LPL will grow with every passing year and go from strength to strength.