Thuppahi's Blog

Michael Roberts

The ongoing T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka involves quite a logistical challenge for the principal units involved in arranging air and land travel for the several teams involved in the competition –– EIGHT teams all told: namely, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, SriLanka, West Indies, Zimbabwe

Premadasa Stadium

There are SEVEN VENUES involved, two in Sri Lanka and 5 in India: N Modi Stadium, AHMEDABAD; …..MA Chidambaram Stadium, CHENNAI; …..Premadasa Stadium, COLOMBO; ……. Arun Jetley Stadium, DELHI; ….. Pallekele Stadium, KANDY; …..Eden Gardens Stadium, KOLKATA; ….. Wankhede Stadium, MUMBAI

Wankhede …Mumbai 

Chidambaram … Chennai

… AND, then, there will be the vicissitudes of WEATHER!

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Vithushan Ehantharajah

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Dragon Dance in Melbourne … & … A Signature Moment

A Bedgar Perera in SUNDAY ISLAND, 20 February 2026

Now that the new administration has completed one year in office and is well into its second year, I thought it is opportune to follow-up my letter titled ”A move towards a ‘CIVILISATIONAL TURN’ brought about by the change of administration“, published in the Sunday Island of February 23, 2025.

Looking back with an open mind for any changes in the political culture, one can easily see that changes did commence and politicians in power do not in general seem to be above the law as much as before. It is evident that the law enforcement agencies mostly function without political interference with a number of key politicians from the earlier regime already behind bars upon conviction by courts for various misdeeds.

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Avishka Mario Seneviratne in Facebook, February 2025 

A few days ago, when I visited the Bandaranaike museum of the BMICH I noticed a briefcase labelled “Minister of Local Government” among the very many artifacts of the late S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike.

S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike first rose to island wide prominence when he entered the First State Council of Ceylon in 1931 as Member for Veyangoda, elected unopposed. A famous photograph published in “The Ceylon Daily News” showed him in national dress beside his father, Sir Solomon Dias Bandaranaike, clad in Edwardian style, standing at the foot of the State Council building. It was not admiration but ridicule. From the beginning, he stood between two worlds..

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Chandre Dharmawardena in May 2014 responding to Devanesan Nesiah’s Article [latter at https://thuppahis.com/2014/05/19/engaing-issues-of-caste-in-india-and-sri-lanka/]

Mr. Nesiah’s discussion “engaging” caste issues begins with the opening remark: “Caste is observed by the overwhelming majority of Sinhalese and Tamils but the subject remains virtually taboo in public discussions. If it is mentioned in public, it is often either to hurl abuse or to negotiate a marriages “ . This is absolutely correct and especially so for communal politics since the time of Arunachalam Ponnambalam and Ponnambalam Ramanathan.

What is often not realized is that the same click of Colombo-based lawyer-Landed aristocracy, and their descendents, have ruled the Tamil-speaking community since the 19th century. The 2013 election of Wigneswaran, Sampanthan, Sumanthiran and others to the NPC is merely a continuation of the same “unchanged leadership”. Unfortunately, this has not been realized by Western observers (see for instance, the observations of the top diplomats in the Canadian Foreign ministry, that I have examined in: http://dh-web.org/hrsits/cansl3-DFA.html

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Nations Trust WNPS Monthly Lecture  …. https://island.lk/wetlands-of-sri-lanka/ **

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Item in ESPNcricinfo, February 2026

 After being asked to bat, Sri Lanka posted 240 for 6, built on half-centuries from Hasini Perera (61 off 86) and Harshitha Samarawickrama (66 off 105). Captain Chamari Athapaththu made 27, while useful middle-order contributions from Nilakshika Silva and Kavisha Dilhari kept the innings moving at a controlled rate. A late cameo from Dewmi Vihanga, who struck 14 off six balls, ensured Sri Lanka pushed towards a competitive total in St George’s in Grenada.

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T𝒉𝒆 𝑲𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒚𝒂𝒏’𝒔 𝑭𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝑺𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑰𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝑶𝒄𝒆𝒂𝒏, 𝑴𝒖𝒕𝒘𝒂𝒍 𝑹𝒐𝒄𝒌, 𝟏𝟖𝟔𝟏 ….Illustrated by the leading Sri Lankan (Ceylonese) artist of the 19th Century, J. L. K. van Dort in 1886.

The composition by van Dort is arranged almost theatrically. At the far left, the ocean opens wide, calm, expansive, luminous. It occupies less physical space than the figures, yet it dominates the emotional field of the image.

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An Item from AN UNKNOWN sent to me by my nephew, Jagath Fernando, in Colombo

After scoring a magnificent century under the bright lights of Pallekele, Pathum Nissanka didn’t just earn applause from his fans, but also admiration from his opponents. In a beautiful post-match moment near the boundary line, Glenn Maxwell placed a friendly hand on Nissanka’s shoulder and gifted him a real match bat as a symbol of appreciation.

With Mitchell Marsh smiling beside them, this scene reminded everyone that the spirit of cricket shines brightest when rivals celebrate greatness together.

“A century, a gift, and a memory that defines true sportsmanship.”

What a lovely gesture. I don’t think the Indians will learn from that. “Cricket is more than just runs and wickets — it’s about respect, humility, and sportsmanship.

PS: A PHOTO of that ‘moment’ …or a Video …. would cap this tale

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AN EMAIL NOTE From A Tony Donaldson in Melbourne, 20 February 2026

Even in dark times, football and other  sports bring peace, fair play ….. reminding us of the best of humanity. So sports is a game of peace in a strange world of conflicts and geopolitics.