Closing in on the final stage of an island-wide hunt to discover Sri Lanka’s next generation of pace bowling talent, Airtel Fastest unveiled the top 14 finalists at a special event.
“When the idea of Airtel Fastest was first discussed, it was apparent that there was a gap between talented young Sri Lankan fast bowlers, and the opportunities presented to showcase their talent. Since it’s inception in February it has really been heartening following the progress of these youngsters. Watching them develop, become more confident in their abilities, learn from their heroes and improve their mindset has truly been heartening. We expect great things from these youngsters so remember their names, and stay tuned for the finals of Airtel Fastest,” Airtel Lanka CEO/MD, Jinesh Hegde stated.
The Airtel Fastest finalists comprises of Vishmi Dewmini, Malsha Madushani, Methma Hettiarachchi and Shayani Senarathne in the Girls Open category, while Eshan Malinga, Mohammed Akil, Maleesha Duran, Janith Madushanka and Chiran Theekshana will fight it out in the finals in the Under 19 Boys category. The over 19 Boys category includes Mohammed Faheem, Rasanjana Aravindu, Chandula Sudampathi, Arun Prakash and Malindu Shehan.
Airtel Fastest commenced in February 2019 under the guidance of Sri Lanka’s former National Bowling Coach, Anusha Samaranayake conducting open auditions across 11 districts in Sri Lanka with the goal of identifying gifted young boys and girls with the the potential to enter the national squad.
145 fast bowlers were selected from three categories; under 19 and over 19 boys as well as an open category for girls.
From the inaugural selection, top 45 fastest were selected for the second round, which included coaching camps and 1:1 sessions with Airtel’s ‘Super Star coaching team’ comprising of Anusha Samaranayake, and current Sri Lankan T20 captain and legendary death bowling sensation, Lasith Malinga together with icons of Sri Lankan game, Chaminda Vaas, Hashan Tilakaratne and Upul Chandana.
“Ultimately, quality fast bowling boils down to training, fitness, technique and of course mindset. In working with these youngsters from the very beginning of Airtel Fastest – I too have been excited to track down boys and girls with such impressive raw ability and I really hope all of our finalists will go on to represent our motherland at the highest levels of the sport,” Samaranayake explained.
“As an organisation with island-wide reach, we at Derana are proud to be able to uplift such a talented group of young bowlers and provide them with a national platform to develop and showcase their abilities while also creating excitement among an entire new generation of Sri Lankan youth. We want them to know that regardless of where they were born and raised, anyone who focuses on improving their abilities has a chance to compete in the big leagues. Their story started as aspiring school crickters, and we look forward to the seeing the next chapters unfold as Season 1 of Airtel Fastest reaches its exciting conclusion.” Group Director-Marketing, Derana TV/Derena FM,Thushara Perera said.
The grand finale of Airtel Fastest is scheduled to take place on the 27th of September 2019 where 3 of the final 14 will be crowned Sri Lanka’s fastest amateur bowlers.
0 comments:
Post a Comment