Galle Test venue looking a pretty picture

Arriving very early in the morning with my friend Bertram Jayasuriya, innovator of the "Catch it" fielding machine,I was amazed at the transformation of the Galle Stadium that was devasted by the cruel tsunami on Boxing Day in 2004.

The stadium looks a picture and having been to many Test playing venues,I can vouch for the fact that this stadium and the one in Grenada in the Caribbean as the two best and picturesque playing venues.

It was fitting that President Mahinda Rajapaksa opened the stadium on the eve of the Test match. And being a sports loving President,it is great that the pavilion has been named in his honour.

I have played at this venue for the Burgher Rereation Club during my career and in those days there were no turf wickets, but it was matting wicket cricket. And in those days we had to chase away the stray cattle, before starting play.

Then once Sri Lanka was admitted as a Test playing nation, things began to happen and the ground was brought up to international level and so was born another Test playing venue for Sri Lanka, with the venue being baptized with a Test between Sri Lanka and New Zealand in 1998.

The venue became a happy hunting ground for Sri Lanka and more Test matches followed.

Then came the tsunami, that wrecked the beautiful venue and nearly erased it from the face of Test playing venues.

But thanks to the resilience of Sri Lanka Cricket and pledges made by cricketing stars such as Ian Botham and Shane Warne, this interesting venue has now risen Phoenix like from the Ashes and can proudly take its place among Test venues and stand out, with the eye catching ramparts in the background.

Among the cricketing giants who have played here before Sri Lanka entered the Test portals were the terrible Ws - Frank Worrell, Everton Weekes and Clyde Walcott.

And when the reconstruction of the venue is spoken about a name that comes to mind and should be writ in letters of gold is that of former Sri Lanka bowler Jayananda Warnaweera. On arrival here early morning, the man I first noticed on the ground was Warnaweera who bowled vicious cutters for Sri Lanka in the earlier days when the country began playing Test cricket.

Looking sleepy eyed, after breaking rest and being at the venue, morning, noon and night to see that the final Test against England would be played here, Warnaweera broke into smiles of joy and heaved a sigh of relief when the first ball was bowled. Pessimists did not think that a Test would be played here. But Warnaweera buried those pessimists and finally what I saw was one of the wonders of Test cricket playing venues.

Warnaweera says that the venue is still not fully complete and that a lot more has to be done. He is confident that everyone will rally round and help in further improving this venue.

Realizing the great part played by the media, Warnaweera had made it a point to see that a state of the art media box be provided. It has to be seen to be believed.

Everything here is new and the wicket too and it was a bit of surprise when England"s Michael Vaughan won the toss and asked Sri Lanka to bat.

Being a new wicket, uncertainty would have prompted Vaughan"s decision. That uncertainty would certainly rub off on his team mates and in putting Sri Lanka into bat, he has gifted Sri Lanka another win if the weather would hold. If he was uncertain,he should still have batted.

Carrying three pacemen would also have prompted Vaughan, hoping that they would capitalize on the early life on the wicket and get the home team out cheaply and move on from there. But then he got them out cheaply in Asgiriya and what happened?

Muttiah Muralitharan must be licking his lips.