Kandy cricket great Bernard Perera the former Sri Lanka first-class cricketer and national women’s coach is remembered . His full name is Jayalathge Bernard Nihal Perera who was born on 27 May 1956 and died on 9 November 2012. He was a Sri Lankan cricketer who played eight first-class matches between 1980 and1983. A hard-hitting batsman, was twelfth man in Sri Lanka’s first Test team, and shortly afterwards took part in Sri Lanka’s first Test tour, to Pakistan in1981-82. Later in 1982 he toured South Africa with the rebel Sri Lanka team. He was the team’s highest scorer, with 450 runs in six first-class matches at an average of 40.90.[5] He scored the team’s only century, 102 in the second match against South Africa. Along with the other members of the team he was banned from Sri Lanka cricket for making the unauthorized tour. After the ban was lifted several years later he coached the national women’s team
Bernand Perera’s contribution to St Anthony’s, whom he captained in 1976 and to Kandy CC, earned him a place in the national team in the early 80s, when Sri Lanka had made their entry into Test cricket.
He missed making the final XI in the inauguralTest against England in February 1982, despite scoring an unbeaten half-century 53 not out for Board President’s XI against an England attack comprising John Lever, Paul Allott, Derek Underwood, Graham Dilley and John Emburey at Asgiriya
.. But after a tour to Pakistan, where he failed to find a place in the Test side, he joined the rebel tour to South Africa in 1982 and was subsequently banned from all forms of cricket for 25 years. Although the ban was lifted after eight years, Perera’s first-class career had ended.
He played eight first-class matches,scoring 537 runs, averaging 38.35 with one century - 102 for the rebel Sri Lankan side against a strong South African line-up in a four-day game at Cape Town.
Being a cricketer from the outstations,Bernard didn’t get the opportunities that today’s outstation cricketers receive.
He was in the same mould as Aravinda de Silva and would have made it big if he had played for any of the schools in Colombo.
Bernard Perera made a quiet comeback to cricket by qualifying as a Sri Lanka Cricket Level I and II coach, handling Kandy CC in addition to running a private coaching school in his home town.
He coached the Sri Lanka women’s team in 2006 before quitting to take over as a Sri Lanka Cricket provincial coach.
0 comments:
Post a Comment