Sir Richard enjoys tea and cricket

First a taste of tea with Dilmah Founder Merrril J. Fernando and then to cricket

Discussing the progress of the Cricket for Life programme

Coaching session

Kiwi cricket legend Sir Richard Hadlee was in Sri Lanka on a flying visit to spend a day with the Cricket Live Foundation, of which he is the patron. The Foundation is a joint collaboration between the Merrill J. Fernando Charitable Foundation and Cricket Live New Zealand formed to help children from underprivileged backgrounds develop life skills for a successful future.

Sir Richard met Dilmah Founder Merrill J. Fernando at the Dilmah head office in Peliyagoda. He tasted tea and learnt from the Master Tea-maker the impact different elevations and terrains have on the flavour of tea.

He then visited the Merrill J. Fernando Charitable Foundation in Moratuwa and discussed the Cricket for Life program which has provided the underprivileged kids with a means to play leather ball cricket and participate in Sri Lanka Schools Cricket Association cricket tournaments as members. 

Sir Richard played a fun match blindfolded, with members of the Blind Cricket teams who are currently participating in the Dilmah National Blind Cricket Tournament. The Tournament, organised by Dilmah since 2008, gives all teams registered with the Sri Lanka Cricket Association of the Visually Handicapped an opportunity to participate in a national level cricket tournament. It is an extension of the commitment of Fernando towards the dignified empowerment of the differently-abled of Sri Lanka.

In the afternoon, Sir Richard conducted a coaching session for school children at the Sunanda Upananda Vidyalaya in Moratuwa, a school under the Cricket for Life initiative.

Over the years the MJF Charitable Foundation has been assisting the visually impaired through several initiatives. Knowledge Chest was launched on World Braille Day in 2014 with the aim of voice recording popular books giving the visually impaired access to them while countering the high costs of Braille books. The Foundation also supports the Subhagya Vidyal aya in Monaragala and works closely with the School for the Deaf and Blind at Ratmalana.

Getting back to Sir Richard Hadlee, he had an international career spanning from 1973-90 as a right-arm fast-medium opening bowler and left-hand middle-order batsman. He was described as “a meticulous, intelligent quick bowler who carried New Zealand for much of his outstanding career”. He took 10 wickets against India at Wellington and two years later bowled England out for 64 and brought New Zealand’s first victory over England. His best Test performance was at Brisbane in 1985 when he took nine wickets in an innings in New Zealand’s first series win against Australia. He held a catch thus having a hand in the tenth wicket. 

In February 1980, 18 years after his debut, on his home ground at Lancaster Park, Christchurch he took his 400th Test wicket – that of India’s Sanjay Mnajrekar, now a popular cricket commentator. When he retired after playing in 86 Tests, he had taken 431 wickets at 22.29, best being nine for 52, 38 five-wicket innings, nine ten-wicket matches. He scored two centuries in a total of 3,124 runs with a highest score of 151 not out. He was knighted for services to cricket in 1990.