We were under pressure to win three titles in a row: Coach Kandamby

Rising Stars of Jaffna Kings Dunith Wellalage and Vijayakanth Viyaskanth

Player of the Final and Most Runs Avishka Fernando

Player of the Series Sadeera Samarawickrama

Most Wickets Carlos Brathwaite

Innovative Player and Maximum Sixes Rahmanullah Gurbaz

• Hasaranga leaving Jaffna Kings was a blessing in disguise for Viyaskanth
• Kandy Falcons performed more than everyone expected

By Sa’adi Thawfeeq

Jaffna Kings Head Coach Thilina Kandamby

Overcoming pressure and performing exceptionally well were the key factors to Jaffna Kings retaining the Lanka Premier League title for the third year in succession.

“The expectations to win three-in-a-row was high, so I am extremely happy that we won. We were under a lot of pressure to win, but our players put aside the pressure and performed very well. That is why we were able to win,” said the champion team’s successful coach Thilina Kandamby. 

“Kandy (Falcons) performed more than everyone expected. They had a very good balance in their team. We received the biggest challenge from them.”

“It became a challenge for us because two or three players left us. We cannot easily replace a cricketer like Wanindu Hasaranga but we prepared ourselves for it. Vijayakanth Viyaskant performed more than I expected from him. From the first game he exhibited his talent. I think it was a blessing in disguise for him that Wanindu left Jaffna because it enabled him to showcase his talent.”

Another young cricketer who came for high praise from Kandamby was Dunith Wellalage, who played his first season for Jaffna Kings.

“I started first as a school coach and I have seen Dunith play in under 12-13 age groups and I knew one day he will make the cut. Likewise, Avishka (Fernando) and Asitha (Fernando), I have seen them from their school days and that gave me a lot of confidence. Dunith has matured beyond his age, he started playing club cricket at the age of 16-17, and he is well ahead of other cricketers of his age. “There are occasions when he has taken wickets and we have not given him a bowl in the next game, but he never lost his confidence. He played according to the team’s needs.”

Speaking of Avishka Fernando who was Player of the Final, Kandamby said: “Avishka came back after injury and I have always told him that he does not know how talented he is. I have a great belief in Avishka’s consistency. He has scored runs for us in all three years. I know that even if he fails in one or two games he gives 100 percent to the team. That’s why I backed him.”

Fernando returned to competitive cricket after a ten-month lay-off where he underwent surgery to his knee. He made a successful return to cricket by finishing as the tournament’s leading run scorer with 339 runs at a strike rate of 124.63 and three half-centuries.

On Player of the Series, Sadeera Samarawickrama (294 runs and 10 dismissals), Kandamby said: “Sadeera had been in the runs for quite some time so I kept in mind that he is one player whom I could use at any time. He performed better than I expected. He has adapted himself quickly to T20 cricket and he made a big contribution to the team.”

Samarawickrama said that he was thankful to Rahmanullah Gurbaz for helping him keep his place in the team.

“I always believe in hard work and I think I gained the benefit of it. I didn’t have any ambition of becoming the Player of the Series but I wanted to finish amongst the top five batsmen in the tournament. I was told beforehand that I will not be playing in the first 2-3 matches but for my luck I got a break to play from the second match onwards (when Gurbaz injured his hand while keeping wickets). 

“I took maximum advantage of it. I must thank Gurbaz, when he got injured and I took over the gloves from him. He saw me keep wickets and backed me. I must thank him for sacrificing his place as a wicket-keeper and giving me the place which enabled me to go and win the Player of the Series award.”

Kandamby also praised the role Shoaib Malik, the former Pakistan cricketer played in Jaffna’s success. 

“We expect from him as a batsman not only to perform, but to learn from him a lot of things. He is a player who has scored over 12,000 runs in T20 cricket, the second highest in the world. During team meetings he speaks more than me and has been an inspiration to the youngsters. 

“He added value to the team. That is why we pick him first each year. This year he couldn’t produce the runs as a batsman but the conversations he’s had with the players has been beneficial to every one of them.”

Losing captain Angelo Mathews of Colombo Stars lauded Jaffna on their win. 

“You have to give credit to Jaffna because they batted well on this difficult pitch. They took full use of the bad balls we bowled and countered our slow balls very well. 163 on this pitch was a very good score but unfortunately for us we couldn’t make full use of it. We didn’t bowl well and they batted well.”

LPL 2022 prize money

Champions ($ 100,000): Jaffna Kings

Runner UP ($ 50,000): Kandy Falcons

Player of the Final ($ 1500): Avishka Fernando (Jaffna Kings)

Player of the Tournament ($ 5000): Sadeera Samarawickrama (Jaffna Kings)

Innovative Player ($ 2000): Rahmanullah Gurbaz (Jaffna Kings)

Green Cap Most Runs ($ 1000): Avishka Fernando (Jaffna Kings - 339 runs)

Orange Cap Most Wickets ($ 1000): Carlos Brathwaite (Kandy Falcons -18 wickets)

Emerging Player ($ 1000): Vijayakanth Viyaskanth (Jaffna Kings)

Maximum Sixes in the Tournament ($ 1000): Rahmanullah Gurbaz (Jaffna Kings - 15)