Opening of Oval on 27Jan 1940
by H.E. Govenor Sir Andrew Caldecott & Sir W. Duraiswamy
Tamil Union's Oval: victim of ethnic prejudice?
by A. Kandappah
The name of the Colombo "Oval" homeground of the 106-year old Tamil Union
Club has been synonymous with local cricket and its growth a for long time. Prior
to Sri Lank's coming of age and international cricket recognition and Test status,
the Oval was the only place "where the action is" in matters cricket. The dreams of
thousands of cricketers and fans were fondly woven around this ground named
after the historic cricket ground in England. As for me, I am by no means a cricket
heavy weight or particular cricket buff either. Yet, like many, the game contains
some interest for me. In the same breath, I cannot disassociate myself as one
totally "uninterested" in cricket (who indeed in the subcontinent can?). If I was in
the latter category, I would not have made that beeline to the hallowed Lords in
London on one occasion to see the opening of the fabulous Haynes-Greenidge
partnership. And, yet on another occasion to watch the then superb Pakistani
openers Moshin Khan and Mudazar Nazar against England. On still another
occasion, I was on a cricket pilgrimage all the way from Colombo to Wales to
watch and cheer Sri Lanka play England.
The Colombo Oval to me carries memories of, among others, the opening of the
world's most attractive openers then. Australia's Lawry and Simpson. Both, in spite
of a weaker Sri Lankan team, showed the enthusiastic crowd how a responsible
opening pair goes about building an innings. There were no rash or unnecessarily
hurried strokes. And then there was the fabulous century of India's one time star
M. L. Jaisimha, whose wicket was eventually taken, to the delight of all, by my ping
pong pal Barney Reid then a budding Thomian school boy. Years later, when I
met Jaisimha at the cricket grounds at Secunderabad he was thrilled I mentioned
the innings and more so, to use his words "of your superb Oval cricket ground".
Those senior to me recall nostalgically the exploits at the Oval of England's
batting legends Len Hutton, Peter May, Tom Graveney, Dennis Compton and the
unforgettable spin trio Laker-Lock-Loader. Many have seen the speedsters
"Typhoon" Tyson and Brian Statham in action at the Oval. The great Don himself
has played there and so have Australia's immortal Keith Miller, Ray Lindwall, Neil
Harvey and Norman O'neill. The Oval drew record crowds when the Windies
visited the Oval. Such giants like Worrel, Weekes, Walcott; the spinners Sony
Ramadhin and Alf Valentine, Gary Sobers, Rohan Kanhai, Clive Lloyd, Alvin
Kallicharan, Roy Fredericks have all delighted our fans at the Oval. Contributing
their own mite from the local side have been our heroes of yesteryear M.
Sathasivam, Stanley Jayasinghe, Clive Inman, F. C. de Saram, C. I. Gunasekera,
Mahes Rodrigo, Gamini Goonesena and A. C. M. Lafir, just to name a few. That
"must-be-there" feature of the local social calendar, the Royal-Thomian, has been
played at the Oval for decades to be followed by the well patronised Joe-Pete and
Ananda-Nalanda. My list, by no means, is exhaustive in that it does not contain
the names of all the great players who graced the Oval with their willow and wrist
artistry but one that I gathered out of my own personal recollection. In a sense,
therefore, the Colombo Oval did not belong only to members of the Tamil Union. It
belonged to all lovers and well-wishers of the game. The common factor is that
these household names all entertained hundreds of thousands of fans at the
Tamil Union’s Oval cricket ground a tradition that needs to be supported and
continued.
Our young cricketers have struggled hard to place Sri Lanka in the world cricket
map and on the lips of every cricket fan in the world. In the process they have
earned for themselves well-deserved personal fame and fortune. Sri Lanka has
come a long way since gaining Test status and today no cricket team “whatever
her current in-form is” can take our team for granted; for, when our lads face them
the result could go either way.
What is puzzling is “as it surely must be for thousands of others” why does this
famous cricketing venue continue to be ignored for Tests and ODIs? The ground
still maintains its advantage of a good location and charm; the stadium is
adequate and there is sufficient parking space. Cricket Board funds have gone
into the construction of two dressing rooms that meet international standards.
When I casually asked this from my friend the industrialist S. Ganesan who is the
President of the Tamil Union he would say no more than shrug and come out with
his characteristic smile “almost to suggest" you are beckoning me into a
controversial area". I understand that when Sri Lanka gained Test status in 1981
the Oval (later to be called the P. Sara Stadium) was the automatic choice for a
match between England and Sri Lanka in 1982 where England won. Sri Lanka’s
first ever Test victory was also recorded at the Oval in September 1985 when we
beat India. Test matches and ODIs were played at the Oval till August 1994 and
thereafter there has been a continous man-made drought of internationals at this
historic venue. The distinction of hosting international cricket matches are now
given to the SSC, CCC, Premadasa Stadium, Asgiriya, Dambulla and Moratuwaâ
excluding the Oval which certainly has much more to offer in preference to many
other venues in the Colombo region now regularly chosen to host international
matches. A master plan for the development of local cricket was prepared in the
mid-90s but strangely in the scheme of things the Oval has been "totally ignored
as a future venue" to quote Tamil Union sources. An extra-ordinary oversight
indeed, if that is the excuse. The Oval in Colombo is the only recognised cricket
ground in Sri Lanka with some Tamil flavour, if that is the sin although today the
Club’s Cricket team shows a non-Tamil majority composition. It will do much to the
good of Sri Lankan Cricket if the Tamil Union’s Oval is once again brought back
as a regular venue for international cricket.
The restoration of the status quo will re-link the history of Sri Lankan cricket to the
memorable performances of magnificent players of yesteryear from many
cricketing nations’ who have all played at the Colombo Oval. Now that we are in
the enviable position of seeing two competing cricket hierarchies overlooking the
game, perhaps things would gravitate the Tamil Union way and towards reasons
sooner than later. The recent Indo-Pakistan cricket matches show that the
goodwill of the people of both countries combined to breach what was considered
an impregnable prejudice barrier. At least in the game of cricket; often called the
great leveller; there can be no space any longer for racial bigotry. As I write this
piece I am simultaneously reading a book titled Crumbs from the table centered in
the Bible belt of Southern USA in the background of the early 20th century. I am
now informed the Oval is likely to be given the honour of hosting an international
match against Bangladesh sometime in the second half of this year. Small
mercies, if you like, do occur after all”don't they?
