Michael Tissera the Magnificent | Daily News

Michael Tissera the Magnificent

S.Thomas’ College, were looking down the barrel and facing imminent defeat against St.Benedict’s College, Kotahena on the Mount Lavinia turf in 1955 when a batsman, struggling to walk steadily to the middle walked out to face the music – that of saving a game that looked lost.

Recalling memories as a 14year old at that time, I was one of the wildly cheering Bens for a green, white and green school victory. The Thomians were tottering having lost their seventh wicket and tumbling.

With everything lost bar the shouting with Camillus Perera a wily left arm spinner running rings round the Thomian batsmen and having them in a flat spin in walked a 15 year old MICHAEL HUGH TISSERA from a sick bed still suffering it is said with a high temperature. He could hardly put bat to ball.

The most stylish

The Bens Captain Toto Abeydeera aware of Tissera’s suffering crowded him placing hawk like fielders all round him. But undaunted, stood like the boy on the burning deck and offering a straight bat, showed the grit that the blue, black and blue is renowned for faced all the wiles and Thomians all heaved a sigh of relief when the final ball was bowled.

Tissera with his partner rowed the batting boat ashore having saved the Thomians from certain defeat and he was chaired to the pavilion by the Thomian supporters. Tissera who was fortunate to have been tutored by such reputed coaches such as Lassie Abeywardena, Derrick de Saram and Bertie Wijesinha used that experience which was a baptism of fire to climb the country’s cricketing ladder.

That as a 14 year old was my first sighting of TISSERA who from that moment launched his glittering career in school, club Nondescripts CC and Colombo Cricket Club and Ceylon that took him to great heights in the game in the cricket firmament and he certainly deserves a special place in SPORTS LEGENDS.

As a stylish and elegant batsman, leg spin bowler and right hand batsman Tissera has many records at school, club and Ceylon in his exemplary career. But the simple man that he is will not want to brag like many lesser known mortals would do. Tissera in that era was the most stylish and an example to budding youngsters on how to play straight. He would always present the full face of the bat to ball and rarely would play cross bat shots.

‘Captain clever’

Tissera after learning his cricket at STCML began his foray into big time cricket that was to launch him into stardom by sculpturing a brilliant century against Saracens in a ‘Sara Trophy’ game on debut at his club ground For Nondescripts CC. From there he climbed the cricketing ladder and won his spurs and sported the Ceylon cap against Peter May’s England team at the SSC in 1958. But that game was rain washed out.

Tissera strode the greens sward like a colossus in the pre Test era. He was a connoisseur’s delight. With head down, foot to the pitch of the ball and with rare world timing he would caress the ball past the fielders and what a delight it was to watch him in full flow.

When he earned the right which was his to lead the country in the pre test era, he did it with great aplomb. He showed a clever brain in reading how the wicket would play, whether to put the opponents in to bat, when to declare and he had the inborn ability to get the best out of his players. He did not look for respect, but earned it. During his reign he was ‘Captain clever.’ He was the best captain the country had in the pre-Test era.

And he proved this when in an unofficial Test as captain against India at Ahmedabad in he brought to life a game that seemed destined for a draw with a daring declaration that baffled Mansur Ali Khan, known as the Nawab of Patudi’s Indians to win the Test which victory served notice on the lords at Lord’s that Sri Lanka’s cricket had arrived. He also led the country to victory over Imtiaz Ahmed’s Pakistanis in an unofficial Test at the Oval.

A tantalizing leg spin bowler

It was a pity that he could not captain the country to the First World Cup tournament in England in 1975, but showed the obedient servant that he was to the game by slamming 52 off 72 balls facing the thunderbolts of Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson at the oval. That was the game in which Thomson sent Sunil Wettimuny and Duleep Mendis to hospital.

Of the many big scores he made I was at the Oval watching the magnificent 102 not out he made for the ‘Daily Mirror’ X1 against the likes of Wesley Hall and Garfield Sobers. Wall was so amazed by his excellent stroke play and when Tissera was on 98, the fearsome Hall ran in and bowled him a full toss which Tissera dispatched to the boundary which sent the full house into raptures.

Tissera was a tantalizing leg spin bowler in the late 1960s when there was a surfeit of leg spinners of the calibre of his school team mate Lareeef Idroos, Raja de Silva (St. Joseph’s), Sarath Vithanage (Royal), Vere de Silva (St. Sebastian’s) and the writer (St. Benedict’s). Incidentally Tissera was my first victim in inter-school cricket when I had him stumped by wicket keeper Anslem Ludoyeke at Kotahena in 1958.

In appreciation of his mighty contribution as a player, captain, manager and administration to the game and country, Sri Lanka Cricket honoured him by bracketing him with the great West Indian and Garfield Sobers and naming a trophy in Test cricket between the two countries.

A pep talk

Ajit Jayasekera the former explosive Thomian opener who needs no introduction to cricket in the country writing in the Thomian souvenir of 2008 had this to say; ‘I still remember the day when Michael Tissera walked out to bat from the old pavilion, through the adoring group of small Thomians when his bat accidentally struck my head. He touched my head and said ‘sorry son.’ When I got home, I refused to obey my mother who wanted all of the brothers in the shower. She asked me why I disobeyed her, to which I replied that “Michael Tissera had touched my head and I did not want to wash it off.”

To humour and a little anecdote, The Board President’s X1 to play Hong Kong in 1972 was chosen and it was customary for Michael Tissera the captain to have a pep talk with the team after each practice session. On the eve of the match Tissera was inquiring from the bowlers as to the field settings they bowl to.

Former Wesleyite and Saracens pace man Nihal Seneviratne and son of late Sports Editor of the ‘Daily News’ Christie Seneviratne and team mate of Mahadevan Sathasivam at Wesley was to share the new ball. So Tissera asked him: “Nihal how do you go?” “By bus,” came the ready reckoner from Seneviratne to great laughter by the rest of the team. Three Saracens players played in the Board X1 Ralston Burke, Seneviratne and the writer.


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