For the first time in the 39 year old history of the Sunday Observer Schoolboy Cricketer Of The Year competition a talented player from a lesser known school from Ambalangoda namely P.de,S.Kularatne College Nipun Ransika was judged as the winner.
In the entire contest which has lasted for nearly four decades Ransika has been the only player to emerge from a school playing in the division 11 proving the talent prevailing in the schools from the outstations.
Ransika’s capabilities were spotted when he represented the Sri Lanka Under 19 schools cricket team while in a tri nation tournament involving Sri Lanka, South Africa and South Africa. According to school cricket authorities ,Ransika had the pace to unsettle any batsmen and proved beyond doubt by capturing a good number of wickets during the tours.
He was judged Man Of The Match and Man Of The Series inSouth Africa as he took 17 wicketsin the series. He is a left-handed batsman who has been among the runs and blooming as a useful all-rounder for the future. At the moment the Sri Lanka Under 19 team is preparing for the Asia Cup to be held in either Bangladesh or India in November. Nipun Ransika is also a member of the team and he hopes to play a pivotal role as an all rounder.