Cricket’s rising stars to battle in Campus Cricket World Finals

The world’s nest college cricketers prepare to face off at the Red Bull Campus Cricket World Final in Sri Lanka, while graduates of the tournament light up the international stage. The six previous years of the competition have served as a stepping stone to international cricket for stars such as Niroshan Dickwella, KL Rahul, Lungi Ngidi and UAE’s Chirag Suri. Held this year from 23 to 29 September at the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) and Nondescripts Cricket Club (NCC) grounds, the World Final will feature teams from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe and the UAE. 

For each of the university teams in the tournament, the World Final is in fact the culmination of campaigns that began in their own home countries. Each side has had to win domestic Campus Cricket tournaments against other local colleges, in order to represent their nation at the global level. Tournament director Brendon Kuruppu – former international cricketer for Sri Lanka – expects this year of the World Final to be the most competitive yet.

“Every year we have played this tournament, the quality of competition has increased, and I am sure we will see this trend continue this year,” Kuruppu said. “The Sri Lankan Campus Cricket tournament was especially intense, and this will be doubly true for the World Final. There is nothing like the heat of tough competition to help young cricketers hone their skills, and raise their level of play. That’s the kind of environment the Campus Cricket World Final provides.”

Campus Cricket was devised as a means to bridge the existing gap between school cricket and senior cricket, and to provide budding players with the opportunity to continue developing their game while engaging in higher studies – a goal that meshed perfectly with Red Bull’s philosophy of revitalising the body and the mind. Former Sri Lankan cricketer Roshan Mahanama, who is also Campus Cricket’s Goodwill Ambassador, said high-quality tournaments such as this one were vital to keep university-aged players in the sport.

“If we can encourage players of this age-group to keep developing their sport, that’s a good thing,” Mahanama said. “It’s a career choice for many of these players, and parents are also involved in these decisions, and sometimes it’s easier to pursue another career and stop playing cricket. In Sri Lanka, especially, we lose a lot of players between the ages of 18 and 23. It’s not just cricket that loses out, it’s the players as well, because sport teaches you a lot. Campus Cricket is a great initiative to get players combining their studies and sport.”

The tournament’s track record speaks for itself, with several top quality international cricketers having been through the Campus Cricket system. In addition to the likes of Dickwella, Rahul, Ngidi and Suri, Sri Lanka cricketers such as big-hitting allrounder Dasun Shanaka and batsman Dhananjaya de Silva have also played in Campus Cricket World Final. This is the fifth time, and third consecutive occasion, in which Sri Lanka will host the World Final. Home side Business Management School (BMS), who will also be representing Sri Lanka this year, had won the tournament in 2016, and were runners up in 2017. They are strong contenders once again, but any of the six teams have the potential to lift the trophy, particularly as the Campus Cricket tournament features a unique energiser over, in which runs are worth double, and wickets cost the batting team five runs. This strategic element has helped create a high percentage of last-over finishes in the two years in which it has been active.

The entirety of this tournament will be played in Colombo, with a round robin stage to precede IPL-style qualifiers, in order to determine the finalists.