Dinesh Chandimal, the former Sri Lanka skipper who was left out of the side for the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup, has been trying to claw his way back into the national side. In the ongoing Premier League tournament Tier A, Chandimal has scored over 1000 runs and has been in fine form ever since the tournament restarted in early August. Chandimal has scored two centuries so far but in the ongoing match, the right-hander has scripted some history. Playing for Sri Lanka Army Sports Club, Chandimal blasted a historic 354 in the clash against Saracens Sports Club in Katunayake on Thursday.
Chandimal blasted 33 fours and nine sixes in his knock as Sri Lanka Army Sports Club reached 642/8 declared. In response, Saracens Sports Club were in deep trouble at 259/8. Chandimal’s 354 is the highest first-class score at domestic level in Sri Lanka. Mahela Jayawardene’s 374 against South Africa at the SSC in Colombo in 2006 is the highest by a Sri Lankan ever.
Big record
Chandimal’s 354 broke the previous record of 351 which was set by Kithuruwan Vithanage. Playing for Tamil Union Cricket and Athletic Club against Sri Lanka Air Force Sports Club in Katunayake in 2015, Vithanage’s knock helped Tamil Union beat Sri Lanka Air Force by an innings and 287 runs.
Chandimal’s last appearance for Sri Lanka was during the Test match against Zimbabwe in Harare in January 2020. The right-hander has been plagued by inconsistency in the last couple of years. His Test averages in 2019 and 2020 were just 15. In ODIs, he endured a poor 2017 managing just an average of 18 and although he bounced back with an average of 40 in 2018, he was not given many chances and was excluded for the 2019 World Cup in which Sri Lanka were eliminated in the league stages.
With international cricket uncertain for Sri Lanka, it seems the wait for Chandimal to come back in the national squad might only increase but this knock has given the selectors something to think about.
