Diyoni Nirmala a promising cricketer
17 year old,Diyoni Nirmala Dharshanie, a student of Gothami Balika Vidyalaya,Kandy, a student of Grade Twelve class in the Arts Stream is an up and coming Cricketer.
Before joining Gothami Balika she was at Kengalla Primary school and she was involved in Athletics too winning the 75 metre race and Long Jump in the Grade four & Grade five classes and joined the new School after the scholarship examination. She started cricket at Gothami Balika from Grade Nine onwards under the coaching of Samantha Dikkumbura, veteran Women’s Cricket Coach who has produced National level women Cricketers of the calibre of Sripali Weerakkody, Dilani Manodara, Praba Udawatte and Chamarie Polgampola to name a few.
At the start Diyoni was involved in House cricket in School as a medium pace bowler and attacking Right hand batswoman and strongly built Diyoni scored 51 runs including 8 fours and 3 sixes against ‘Uthpala House’ at the Inter House Cricket Match representing ‘Madara House’ held at Aruppola MC Grounds and she went on to laim 3 wickets for Forty runs in the particular match.
In the following year in 2020 she associated in a 110 runs partnership for the first wicket with S.Sathayanganie at the Inter House Cricket tournament and she represented her School at the District level Cricket organized by the Dept. of Education against St.Anthonys’ Balika in 2019 and she bagged four wickets for 28 runs against Mahamaya Girls School at the same tournament in the same year.
In the year 2018 while representing her school, she started club Cricket and represented Malwatte Cricket Club at the Inter Club Match against Kandy Cricket and Athletic Academy to score thirty six runs with 3 sixes and 2 fours. In the following year she claimed five wickets for thirty runs with her medium pace bowling and she was selected to the District Cricket team under Shini Senaratne in the Inter District matches against Kegalla & Nuwara Eliya districts.
Her intention is to continue cricket while doing her higher studies to become a National level Womens’ cricketer and to improve her studies too to become a Lawyer in Profession. She is thankful to her Cricket Coach, the Principal of the School and other staff members for the encouragement given to her to improve the game of Cricket.