Dambulla hosts Asia Cup cricket in June

By Champika Fernando

Dambulla will host its first major international cricket tournament since the tri-nation tournament involving Sri Lanka, New Zealand and Pakistan in 2003, when the venue hosts the 11th edition of Asia Cup in June this year.
Sri Lanka Cricket has decided to shift all matches to Dambulla, the only international venue with floodlights apart from R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo as the tournament requires all matches to be day night. Dambulla, inaugurated in 2001 hosted its first major tournament in 2003, but since then the venue has only hosted bi-lateral series due to internal cricket politics.
Thus this would be the first time in seven years that an entire tournament will be held at the venue.
"We were compelled to shift all matches to Dambulla as all matches are day night encounters," said SLC secretary Nishantha Ranatunga.
Although R Premadasa is the highest capped international venue in Sri Lanka, which has hosted almost all day night encounters in Sri Lanka's cricketing history, it cannot be used due to refurbishments ahead of next years World Cup.
Asia Cup will see only the top four teams in Asia, Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh battling out during the 9-day tournament to be held from June 15-24. Sri Lanka have hosted the event thrice and this time, Sri Lanka will take the field for a hat-trick of winning the team title.
India have won the tournament four times while Pakistan won the event once.