When a chronic knee injury brought his international career to an abrupt end at the age of 28, former Sri Lankan pacer Ashantha de Mel switched to bridge, one of the world's most popular card games. Displaying exemplary revolve and resilience, Ashantha emerged as a leading bridge player and represented Sri Lanka in international tournaments, including an appearance at the Commonwealth Games.
The 64-year-old Ashantha, who was the torchbearer of the Sri Lankan attack in his country's first-ever Test match, is currently at Kumarakom attending the All India Open Bridge Championships.
According to Ashantha, bridge has long remained a neglected sport in Sri Lanka despite it being a part of the Asian Games. The lack of government support, insufficient funding, and inadequate infrastructure back home forced Ashantha to move to India in search of greener pastures. "The Sri Lankan authorities view bridge as a game of cards played merely for monetary benefits. It is a wrong notion that needs to be changed. Bridge is a game of skill and intelligence," says Ashantha.
Ashantha is coached by former Indian senior bridge team captain R Krishnan. Krishnan, a native of Tamil Nadu, is also taking part in the All India Open Bridge Championships.
Ashantha, who has served as the chief selector of the Sri Lankan cricket team for twelve years over two tenures, has expressed his disappointment at the current state of affairs of Sri Lankan cricket.
"The prime reason for the Sri Lankan cricket team's poor performance in recent times is political interference. There is no lack of passion and talent for cricket among the youth in Sri Lanka. However, they are not getting ample opportunities to showcase their talent. The selectors also show no patience to give new players enough time to accustom themselves to international cricket. Many promising players have been at the receiving end of constant chopping and changing. If a player fails once, he will immediately get dropped from the squad. It does not augur well for the future of the game in Sri Lanka," Ashantha laments.
When Ashantha read about India's wicket-keeper batsman Rishabh Pant's return to the Indian Premier League, sixteen months after suffering several injuries in a horrific road accident, he recalled the harrowing sequence of events that happened after he sustained a serious knee injury in 1988.
Ashantha, who was also a decent lower-order batter, was at the peak of his form, taking 59 wickets each in Tests One-Day Internationals when the injury cut short his career. The delay in ensuring quality treatment and the limited resources at the disposal of the Sri Lankan Cricket Board hampered his recovery process. However, with his unwavering spirit and determination, Ashantha was able to turn cricket's loss into bridge's gain.
