Bihanga Mendis – the pride of Sebastianites
St. Sebastian’s College Moratuwa First Eleven Cricket Pool 2021/22. Front Row Seated L/R – Asanka Perera (Asst. Coach), Bradmon Ediriweera (Head Coach), Nilan Fernando (Asst. MIC), Bihanga Mendis (Captain), Rev. Fr. Sanjeewa Mendis (Rector), Crishene Perera (Vice Captain), Kanishka Perera (MIC), Neil Rajapaksha (Consultant Coach), Kelum Perera (Trainer).
Middle Row Standing L/R – Nilesh Perera, Aloka Fernando, Nadeesh Fernando, Virosh Wijesinghe, Mahen Silva, Sasindu Prarthana, Sajan Wijeratne, Sheneth Fernando, Keshara Madushanka,
Back Row Standing L/R – Nisal Senanayake, Ryan Disanayake, Savindra Rodrigo, Manjula Chanthuka, Sadeesh Fernando, Yashan Avishka, Sanesh Fernando. (Picture by Dilwin Mendis Moratuwa Sports Special Corr)
Fourth year coloursman. Left hand opening bat and Left arm leg spinner, Captain of the first eleven cricket team 2021/2022 and athlete Bihanga Madushan Kavishka Mendis has brought honour and immense glory to his two schools Methodist High School Puwakaramba Moratuwa and St. Sebastians College Moratuwa with his deeds in the field of cricket.
Bihanga who hails from Indibedde Moratuwa was born on September 16 2002 and initially admitted to his village school Methodist High School Puwakaramba in 2008. At the inception he did not do any sport but when he came up to grade five he participated for the Inter House Sports Meet and did 75, 100, 200 and 400 metres and won places. His Parents Manjula Mendis and Kumari Jayarathne noticing that his forte is cricket handed over their son to the school cricket coach and in his first year in the under 13 division three he scored 380 runs with five fifties and in the following year in seven matches he scored 220 runs with a half century and played for the Big Match against their arch rivals Shasthrananda Vidyalaya Dehiwala and after that he was drafted to St. Sebastians College.
He walked into the under 15 division one team with ease and in his first year itself he scored 420 runs with an unbeaten 102 runs and he put on an opening stand of 218 runs with Lakila Perea who contributed 111 runs and perhaps it may be a record for Sebs under 15 division one cricket. In his second year in the under 15 in seven outings he collected 250 runs with a fifty and grabbed 18 scalps and he was selected to play for the Prima Cup in the Colombo District South Outer Team and for the Provincial team and he was the Vice Captain. He was selected for the Sri Lanka schools under 15 squad of 30 members for the tour of Malaysia.
He was selected for the first eleven cricket pool. His first year in the under 19 was in 2019 and scored 160 runs and played in the Big Match and the Limited Over versus their arch rivals Cambrians. In 2020 Big Match was cancelled at the eleventh hour due to Corona and he played in the 2021 and 2022 Big Matches and the One Dayers and captaining in his last year and the Big Match was drawn and they won the One Dayer after three years. In 2021 he played in six inter school One Dayers and in 2022 in five tournament matches. He played for the Colombo South Zone in three matches and got a fifty at an average of 87.0. Then in 2019 he played for Saracens in the under 23 tournament followed by Sara Trophy for Unichela Sports Club and presently he is playing in the Mercantile Tournament and his deputy skipper of the school team is Crishen Perera while his Coaches are Bradman Ediriweera and Lahiru Femando.