Sri Lanka’s cheer queens, no more butter for Hong Kong, and Sharafu’s gift for Kerala fans

By K.R. Nayar 
From Dubai International Stadium

It is said that ‘Behind the success of every man is a woman’. Is that the reason Sri Lankan women supporters turned up in large numbers to outnumber the men during the Sri Lanka-Hong Kong match? They cheered more loudly than the men from the stands and danced to the music continuously. Could it be that these lady fans were behind Hong Kong dropping 11 catches, which helped Sri Lanka win the tense match by four wickets with only seven balls to spare? Following the butter-fingered fielding by the Hong Kong team, there can now be only one solution: Hong Kong players should not be served butter for breakfast during the entire series, because they don’t have enough time to train and sharpen their catching skills. A few Sri Lanka fans wore the Lasith Malinga wig, which has been dwindling in numbers over the years.

Sri Lanka women fans at the Dubai International Stadium for the match against Hon Kong. Photo by K.R. Nayar 

Staking claim for first no handshake

The talk about the ‘no handshake’ incident during the India-Pakistan match spilled over to the Sri Lanka-Hong Kong match too. More than the performance of the players, many preferred to discuss this issue. It is a fact that a negative incident will continue to be talked about more than any positive one. A Sri Lankan team supporter at the stadium reminded this reporter that it was his team that had set the trend of no handshake before the Indians. In the 2023 World Cup, during an ODI against Bangladesh, when Angelo Mathews became the first player in history to be timed out, the Sri Lankans protested by refusing to shake hands after the match.

With Muttiah Muralitharan... presenting G Force Cricket Academy's cricket tour book 

An Indian fan standing nearby defused the Sri Lankan’s claim by reminding him that in 2008, New Zealand had refused to shake hands with England after their batter Grant Elliott was declared run out following a collision with bowler Ryan Sidebottom. The debate ended in a chuckle when someone asked if Sri Lankan legend Muttiah Muralitharan would have shaken hands with umpire Darrel Hair, who had no-balled him for chucking in the 1995 series.

Sanath Jayasuriya in the role of a coach. Photo: Sri Lanka Cricket 

Two Sri Lankan run-getters as coaches

Two great Sri Lankan players were in the dressing room in the role of coaches. Sanath Jayasuriya is the head coach of the Sri Lankan team. In fact, he is the highest run-getter in the Asia Cup, piling up 1,220 runs from 25 Asia Cup matches. This reporter was fortunate to have covered his knock of 189 against India in the 2000 Coca Cola Champions Trophy at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium, which is remembered by many UAE fans as one of the best knocks they have witnessed. Interestingly, the Hong Kong team coach is another prolific Sri Lankan run-getter, Kaushal Silva, who had made his Test debut at the Dubai International Stadium in 2011 against Pakistan and went on to score 2,099 Test runs.

 Sharafu gifts a half century for Kerala fans before Sanju Samson

A large number of Kerala fans have been waiting to watch their state’s Sanju Samson bat. Since India won against UAE and Pakistan before Samson could get to bat, they were disappointed. However, they were thrilled when, before Samson could probably hit a half century in the Asia Cup, another player from their state did it. UAE opener Alishan Sharafu won the Player of the Match award with his knock of 51 against Oman in Abu Dhabi on Monday.

My interview with Alishan Sharafu when he was a school boy 

By hitting Jasprit Bumrah for a delectable boundary and Axar Patel for a six in the match against India, this 22-year-old boy displayed his aggressive batting skills. This reporter, who has interviewed Sharafu as a 14-year-old schoolboy following his huge scores in domestic matches, recalled him saying that he wanted to bat like South Africa’s AB de Villiers. Some of the strokes he plays now resemble De Villiers’s shots; he once scored 100 in just 36 balls, with his fifty coming off only 14 balls in a domestic match. In 2024, he smashed an unbeaten 87 off 47 balls for Abu Dhabi Knight Riders against Desert Vipers in the Abu Dhabi T10 tournament, hitting 11 boundaries and four sixes against a bowling lineup featuring Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga, and Pakistan’s Mohammad Amir and Shadab Khan.