Cricket Venues in Sri Lanka Trivia Quiz

Answer: President

President Ranasinghe Premadasa (1989-1993) championed the development of the RPS, which was established in 1986. Prior to the construction of this 40,000-seater stadium, cricket in Sri Lanka had only been played at local club cricket grounds. The stadium was renovated prior to the 2011 ICC World Cup, which Sri Lanka co-hosted along with India and Bangladesh.

Answer: Asgiriya Stadium

Formerly the Asgiriya International Stadium, the venue was once used by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) to host Test matches. In 2010, a new SLC-owned cricket ground was opened in Kandy, and the ground at Asgiriya is was used only for domestic and schools cricket.

Answer: M. Muralidaran International Cricket Stadium

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) had initially planned to renovate the cricket ground at Asgiriya, but this had been complicated by it being the private property of a local school. Consequently, SLC opted to build its own cricket ground at Pallekele, on the outskirts of Kandy.

The new venue debuted in the 2nd Test of the Sri Lanka vs West Indies series in December 2010. It was initially named Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, but was renamed in honour of cricketing legend Muttiah Muralidaran, who is a Kandy native.

Answer: Rangiri Dambulla International Cricket Stadium

The RDICS is situated on the outskirts of the agricultural trading town, Dambulla, in Sri Lanka's North-Central Province. The venue was constructed in just 167 days (but has undergone some further development in subsequent years to improve its facilities) and opened with an ODI between Sri Lanka and England in the year 2000. Sri Lanka Cricket chose to build a new cricket ground at this location because the region isn't affected by monsoon season, thus allowing Sri Lanka to schedule cricket matches throughout the year.

Answer: M. Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium

The MRICS was built for the 2011 ICC World Cup. Despite its initial reluctance, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) was persuaded build a new stadium in Hambantota by the government of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa. SLC eventually agreed that while a venue in Hambantota may not even be financially viable in the immediate future, government plans to develop the small rural town into Sri Lanka's largest economic centre meant it was a good long-term investment.

Answer: Sinhalese Sports Club Ground

These players all played for the Sinhalese Sports Club, who play their home matches at this venue. Often referred to as "the Lord's of Sri Lanka", the Sinhalese Sports Club Ground has been the setting of many domestic cricket finals, and has frequently been used to host Test matches. It also hosted 1996 ICC World Cup and 2002 ICC Champions' Trophy fixtures.

Answer: Colombo Cricket Club Ground

This venue is the home ground of Colombo Cricket Club, the oldest cricket club in Sri Lanka. The venue made its First-Class debut in 1927, when The Europeans of Ceylon hosted the MCC. Many of the world's leading Test cricketers of the early-to-mid twentieth century have taken to the field here - the venue was the setting for many of the matches on 'whistle top tours' of Sri Lanka by England while en route to Australia, and vice versa.

Answer: Galle International Stadium

The ground was developed in 1876 as a race track. However, due to the popularity of cricket among locals, cricket matches were also played there. Eventually, the racing ceased, and the venue was officially declared a cricket ground by the Galle Municipal Council in 1927.

Answer: President of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC)

Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu was the first president of SLC (then the Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka). The multipurpose venue, known colloquially as 'the P. Sara', is owned by the Tamil Cricket and Athletic Club. Don Bradman's 1948 'invincibles' played at this venue just weeks prior to their famous tour of England.

The P. Sara is occasionally used by SLC to host Test matches, but is predominately used in Sri Lankan domestic cricket.

Answer: True

Sri Lanka hosted England in a one-off Test match at the P. Saravanamuttu Stadium in 1982. England won by 7 wickets.

Answer: M. Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium (Hambantota)

Sri Lanka opened their 2011 World Cup campaign at the M. Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium in Hambantota, against Canada. Sri Lanka won by 210 runs.

Answer: R. Premadasa Stadium (Colombo)

Sri Lanka played New Zealand at the RPS in Colombo in the 1st Semi-Final of the 2011 ICC World Cup. Sri Lanka won by 5 wickets.

Answer: Galle International Stadium

Sadly, most of the original facilities, including the heritage-listed nineteenth century grandstand, were lost in the 2005 Boxing Day tsunami. The reconstructed stadium, which opened in December 2007, is an odd mixture of modern and classical architecture.

Answer: True

Murali went past Warne's record of 708 Test wickets on Day 3 of the 1st Test in Kandy in December 2007, the last international match at Asgiriya. Paul Collingwood was the victim of Muralidaran's 709th wicket. Sri Lanka went on to win the match by 88 runs.

Answer: M. Muralidaran International Cricket Stadium (Kandy)

As with the cricket ground in Centurion, the ground at Pallekele has a large grand stand at one end and grass banks on the sides. The only major difference is that the press box is located at the other end of the ground at Pallekele, whereas it has been incorporated into the grandstand at Centurion.