Former BCCSL secretary de Silva dead

Bandula de Silva, who died in Colombo on Tuesday, was a former cricket secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka, as it was known then, and belonged to an era when Sri Lanka were struggling to obtain full membership of the ICC.

De Silva, who was in his late seventies, served as secretary to two former board presidents NM Perera, in 1978-79, and TB Werapitiya, in 1979-80. His assistant on both occasions was Michael de Zoysa, the manager of the Sri Lanka team currently in Australia and New Zealand for the World Cup.

"Bandula was a very relaxed person full of fun and jokes. He never got angry with anyone," De Zoysa said. "One thing that stands out was that he got everybody to do the work delegated to them. He was secretary at a time when cricket was broadened in the country, when the doors were open for cricketers outside Colombo to compete for places in the national team."

The board had no headquarters at the time, and meetings were held in de Silva's residence on Gregory's Road in Colombo. His private phone was used as the board's telephone and he bore the cost of all international calls.

"During those days only those with sufficient license, resources and understanding of the subtle nuances of the game came forward for BCCSL posts, which were normally uncontested," de Silva once said in an interview. "The posts were accepted with a great degree of cordiality, camaraderie and trust."

De Silva could be considered an unsung hero of Sri Lanka Cricket. "What Sri Lanka cricket requires now are not personality cult pushers but stalwarts who personify Sri Lanka's dream," he said without fear or favour.

A cricket aficionado all his life, de Silva represented Nalanda College, one of the leading schools in the country, Peradeniya University and Catamarans SC in club cricket. He continued to serve the game different capacities after his playing days. As Director of Small Industries and vice-president of the State Services Cricket Association he was elected as a member of the BCCSL's tournament committee in 1975 and three years later became its secretary.

De Silva was founder-editor of the cricket magazine Score and a recipient of an ICC Medal of Honour for his services to cricket.