De Soysa International Cricket Stadium (formerly known as Tyronne Fernando Stadium) is a multi-use

stadium A stadium (: stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage completely or partially surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit ...

Moratuwa Moratuwa () is a large municipality on the southwestern coast of Sri Lanka, near Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia. It is situated on the Galle–Colombo (Galle road) main highway, south of the centre of Colombo. Moratuwa is surrounded on three sides ...

, in southwestern

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, ...

. It is currently used mostly for

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 ...

matches. The stadium holds 15,000 people and hosted its first Test match in 1992. The ground opened in 1940 and gained Test status in 1979. Moratuwa, located just south of

Colombo Colombo, ( ; , ; , ), is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. The Colombo metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of 5.6 million, and 752,993 within the municipal limits. It is the ...

is renowned for its

carpentry Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, Shipbuilding, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. C ...

, cricket and its philanthropists. Indeed, it was the most famous of these families that initiated the development of De Soysa Park Stadium, when they donated the plot of land to the Urban Council in 1940, to develop the Sports Complex. An additional were sold under its market value by another member of the family. The ground was named De Soysa Park and subsequently used mainly for Moratuwa Sports Club (MSC) and school competitions.

History

A. H. T. de Soysa

Albert Hildebrand Theodore de Soysa (14 March 1889 - 2 November 1959) was a Ceylonese entrepreneur and

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

. He was the second son of Solomon Peter de Soysa (1854–1906), the

Managing Director A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

of the business concerns of cousin Sir

Charles Henry de Soysa Charles Henry de Soysa Dharmagunawardana Vipula Jayasuriya Karunaratna Disanayaka popularly known as Charles Henry de Soysa, JP (3 March 1836 – 29 September 1890) was a Ceylonese entrepreneur and philanthropist. He was a pioneering planter, i ...

and Dora Caroline Weerasooriya. He attended

Trinity College, Kandy Trinity College, Kandy is a private Anglican boys' school located in Kandy, Sri Lanka. It offers both day and boarding facilities. It was founded in 1872 by British Anglican missionaries of the Church Missionary Society, modelled on Britis ...

and went on to become its greatest benefactor by financing several building projects including the college hall. In 1940, de Soysa initiated the development of the De Soysa Park as a venue for sports and recreation by gifting a plot of land and purchasing an additional . It was intended for

, other sports and public use. It was again de Soysa that assisted the call for putting up the first stadium/pavilion in 1952. His other benefactions include the Ingiriya Hospita

the Gamini Central College and the Christ Church, Ingiriya (Kalutara District). He was a recipient of the Distinguished Auxiliary Service Medal of

The Salvation Army The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestantism, Protestant Christian church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. It is aligned with the Wesleyan-Holiness movement. The organisation reports a worldwide m ...

Club Presidents and other benefactors

The club, its presidents D. H. L. De Silva, Dr. H. I. Fernando and local MP Wimalasiri De Mel took a keen interest in developing it further. In 1979 Moratuwa received

public funds Government spending or expenditure includes all government consumption, investment, and transfer payments. In national income accounting, the acquisition by governments of goods and services for current use, to directly satisfy the individual o ...

from the then Deputy Foreign Minister, Tyronne Fernando. A stadium was built, which could accommodate approximately 16,000 spectators.

International matches

The first international team to play at the ground was the West Indians in 1979. The pitch has traditionally favoured the batsmen, but it can break up and the ball then has a tendency to keep low. The first Test match at the ground was against

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

on 8 September 1992.

Allan Border Allan Robert Border (born 27 July 1955) is an Australian cricket commentator and former international cricketer. A batsman, Border was for many years the Captain (cricket), captain of the Australia national cricket team, Australian team, and l ...

made 106 and

Ian Healy Ian Andrew Healy (born 30 April 1964) is an Australian former international cricketer who played for Queensland domestically. A wicketkeeper and right-hand middle-order batsman, he first played international cricket in 1988, after six first ...

71 as the visitors scored 337 in the first innings and controlled the match thereafter. However, half centuries from

Aravinda De Silva Deshabandu Pinnaduwage Aravinda de Silva (, ; born 17 October 1965) is a former Sri Lankan cricketer and captain, regarded as one of the best Sri Lankan cricketers, he played in the team as an all-rounder. De Silva was a key member of the Sri L ...

and

Hashan Tillakaratne Deshabandu Hashan Prasantha Tillakaratne (born 14 July 1967) is a former Sri Lankan cricketer and a former Test captain for Sri Lanka. He was a key member for 1996 Cricket World Cup winning team for Sri Lanka. He is currently a politician and ...

ensured a draw for the home side. The most memorable of the four Test matches - they were all drawn - at the ground was the third, against

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 ...

. On the last day

Jonty Rhodes Jonathan Neil "Jonty" Rhodes (born 27 July 1969) is a South African professional cricket coach, commentator and former Test cricket, Test and One Day International cricketer. He is regarded as one of the greatest fielders of all time and was the ...

defied

Muttiah Muralitharan Deshabandu Muttiah Muralitharan (born 1972) is a Sri Lankan cricket coach, businessman and former professional cricketer. Averaging over six wickets per Test match, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the ...

to score 101* and keep the series alive. Bangladesh played their first ever ODI match here against Pakistan in the 1986 Asia Cup. In recent times the venue is mostly used for the foreign teams to play their side games and for Sebastianites to play their home matches in the domestic season. In recent times the wicket has become rather low in bounce, is conducive to spin, but is generally favourable to the batsmen. It is also the venue for the Battle of the Golds, the annual big-match between Prince of Wales' College and St. Sebastian's College. The Battle of the Golds (Panadura and Moratuwa) between Moratu Maha Vidyalaya and Sri Sumangala College, Panadura. The Battle of the Mangosteen, between Kalutara Vidyalaya and Tissa Central College and the Battle of Greens, between Royal College, Panadura and St John's College, Panadura are played at the venue.

International five-wicket hauls

Key

Tests

ODIs

International Centuries

There has been five Test centuries scored at the venue.

References

External links

ESPN Cricinfo profile on De Soysa Stadium

Birth of De Soysa Park and Moratuwa Sports Club
{{Test Cricket Grounds of Sri Lanka Test cricket grounds in Sri Lanka Buildings and structures in Moratuwa Sports venues completed in 1952