Aravinda's First Taste of England: Where Dreams Were Forged
A 15 year old teenager stepped onto a plane for the very first time, full of excitement, on his way to England with his U19 cricket team. That was Aravinda de Silva's reality in 1981...
Imagine being fifteen, stepping onto a plane for the very first time, your heart thumping with a mix of excitement and nerves. That was Aravinda de Silva's reality in 1981, a wide-eyed Sri Lankan teenager on his way to England with his Under-19 cricket squad. This wasn't just a cricket tour; it was a doorway to a whole new world!
Aravinda, along with his buddies like Arjuna Ranatunga, Rumesh Ratnayake, Charith Senanayake and Graeme Labrooy, were like kids in a candy store. Every moment was a thrill – the buzz of international travel, the late-night chats in shared rooms, and the sheer novelty of filling up their passports with official stamps. They even discovered the simple joy of English ice cream, a world away from home. But, of course, the real magic was the cricket.
They arrived right in the middle of "Botham's Ashes," and the country was buzzing. Everywhere they went, people were talking about Ian Botham's incredible heroics. Aravinda and his teammates felt the electric atmosphere, realising just how much cricket could move a nation. It wasn't just a game; it was a shared passion, a source of national pride.
Aravinda himself had his own moment of glory, scoring a century against the Royal Navy XI. But, in a funny twist, it was initially attributed to his teammate, Ashley de Silva. Even his dad got confused! That's when "P.A. de Silva" – Pinadduwage Aravinda de Silva – was born, a way to make sure his achievements were rightfully his.
Beyond the matches, one memory stood out: their trip to Lillywhites, the legendary sports store. For a bunch of young cricketers from Sri Lanka, it was like stepping into a dream. Rows and rows of cricket bats, each one promising something different. They could barely afford anything, but just holding those bats, feeling their weight and balance, ignited something inside them. Their tour manager, understanding their dreams, bought a special bat for the team, a symbol of their journey.
That tour wasn't just about cricket; it was about growing up, about understanding the weight of representing your country. Aravinda absorbed it all, the passion, the expectations, the spotlight. Years later, as a World Cup hero, he'd still remember that first trip to England – the roar of "Botham's Ashes," his first international century, and the feeling of holding a bat that held the promise of a future legend. It was more than a tour; it was where a young boy's dreams took flight. (Aravinda de Silva, My Autobiography, 1999)
Photo Credits: Olga Herath/ R. B. M. Sumanadasa
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