The Unitech Cup 2006 was 3 match bilateral One-Day cricket contest between home team Sri Lanka and India. The Unitech Cup was originally a Triangular One-Day

Cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

Tournament to be held in

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

, between Sri Lanka,

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. However, South Africa pulled out due to safety issues regarding a nearby bomb blast in Colombo, not far from the stadium. The tournaments fixtures were to be held originally in the cities of Dambulla and Colombo, but were later revised to be played only in Colombo. Each team was to play 4 matches, 2 against each opponent, with the best 2 teams qualifying for the final. Despite statistics pointing out Sri Lanka to be favourites at home, the series was tipped to be one of the most competitive tournaments in a while. This was despite many key injuries in the South African squad.

Squads

Safety issues

On the eve of the tournament, the opening match, between Sri Lanka and South Africa, on 14 August 2006, was called off due to torrential rain. With reserve days for each scheduled match, this was not a major issue, but a bomb blast that occurred only 2 kilometres away from the stadium endangered the tournament. This was due to increased concerns from the South African players, who were ready to pull out, but were willing to continue playing if Security Evaluations deemed it safe. An official statement from the South African Cricket Board was made, stating that the team would pull out, due to the current risk being at an "unacceptable level". The Sri Lankan board persuaded the Board of Cricket Control of India to consider a 5-match Bilateral series, but the BCCI accepted a 3-match series. A revised fixtures list was released after the considerable delay and the decision made by the South Africans.

League stage

Postponed match

1st match

2nd match

3rd match

4th match

5th match

6th match

Rescheduled ODI series between Sri Lanka and India

External links

* Cricinfo - Triseries in Sri Lanka 2006 - http://aus.cricinfo.com/db/ARCHIVE/2006/OD_TOURNEYS/UNITECHC/

References

International cricket competitions in 2006 {{international-cricket-competition-stub