In RLirsuit of a childhood drea

CHANNA WICKREMESEKERA on an up and coming cricketer

Kevin Indulanka

Tissera first we m to the i\l[elbourne Cricket Ground as an eight-yearo ld. His artist dad Vernon had created a portrait o f Sri Lankao 'spi n wiz' Mutchiah MuraLitharan which he wamed co present co him in p e rson. Understanding cliac the team was training there, Vernon decided to take his two boys Kevin and George to the 'G ' to present the portrait co the Sri Laokan hero. Whilst such ;i trip to d1e 'home of spore' may have been one co saviour for some, at the time it was not one Kevin reLished. Simply put, cricket was no t o n e of his pas sio ns. Hjs older brother George was the cricketer in the family.

Forward ten yea.rs, and all that has changed. In fact, Vernon claims, that trip co ilie MCG was the changing point in Kevin's life.

"At d1e MCG, f was to ld by o ne of the Sri Lan.kan officials that l would be able to meet with lv[maJj and presem him with the painting," recalls Vernon. H owever sent o n somewhat o f a 90 -minure outlandish chase, Vernon was despondent as he found out d1ac Murali and the rest of the Sri Lankan team had left ilie venue

Tired, sad and disappointed, ir was at t his time that Kevin spoke up and promised his dad iliac he would one day play at ilie MCG.

" Prior co that, Kevin didn't really take to cricket as much as bis brother, but so m ething changed that clay." (Lacer o n that clay Vernon was abl e co hand over his painting thanks co the helps o f Cha.minda Vass).

Tbat was ilie beginning of a dream for young Kevin Now, the boy who didn't necessarily want much co do with cricket, grew an ll1lbridled love for the game. He began co read aviclJy about cricket, and got invohred in the game at school. Cartoons now gave way to cricket on TV. \Xlhile his broilier George played the game more as a means of relaxation, Kevin seemed to indulge in it with a passion.

Kevin's ultimate passion for the game was rewarded recently when he was chosen as one of three young Victorians to participate in Cricket AuscraJja's new initiative , the Mul ticultural Leadership Program. The program, which is aimed at changing die face of J\uscraliao cricket, will provide die partic ipants the opportunity co g ain an understanding o f all tlie facets of ilie game - i.n and out of the grow1ds - and turn them into multicultural ambassadors for the spore in AustraLia.

Since then Kevin had grow n aod matured into to fine young cricketer. Representing h is schools and clubs from d1e age of 9 and onwards, he had developed into a promi si ng right arm leg spi nner with a penchant for aggressive stroke play. U nder Kevin's deputy leadership his primary school, St. J oseph's in Springvale, Melbourn be won their maiden premiership in 2005. This love for the game would only become deeper whilst at seco ndar y school, where he represented l'vfazenod CoUege's sch ool cricket team in every year level from 7 to 12, even taking up leaderslup responsibilities as vice-cap tain in Years 8 and 9 to captaincy in Year 10, as well as captaining the First Xl in Year 12.

Whilst there have been setbacks, where Kevin's talems had not always been recognised at club level, he persisted in his gu.ietly determined way, not aUowing Little obstac les to halt his progress. To take his cricket forward, he began to get expert coaching by Owen Moctau aod Dr. Rene Ferclinands, both of whom, as Kevin explains, continue to play a crucia l part in his development.

"Without the likes of Owen i\{otcau who has helped me wholeheartedly witl1 m y batting aod love of the game, and Dr. Rene Ferclinands who has taken the time out of hi s busy schedule co work closely wiili me so mat m y 'leggies' develop, I wouldn't dream of being in ilie pos ition now where 1 can potentially go far with my cricket," says Kevin.

He also sai d that he has benefited from the Young Cricketer's Developmen t Program (TYCDIEP), a unique program developed in Melbourne. Cofounded b y his failier and o ne of his close friends Johann Jayasinha, the no r- for-profit organisation takes yo ung boys o n crjcket tours so d1a t they may experience the Life of an international cricketer with regards co touring, media commitments and the like

Partic ipating in the inaugural tom co Sri Lanka in 2009, and the follm,ving tour in 2010 as captain of ilie team, this as he puts it, is where he really wamed to be as a cricketer.

" The tours were some of me best times you coul d have. Not only did you get ro experience so me of the things international c ricketers do, but you do so with yo ur mates around you. Captaining the team i.n d1e seco nd tour was a privilege, and to be able to wi.n four out of the six g,rn1es we p layed was a massive improvement from ilie previous year, and really solidified the belief that anything is possible with a bit of hard work."

De spite his modest successes in cricket so far, Kevin has not allowed me spore to cotaUy dominate his life. He studied hard co obtain excellent VCE results and enter university this year However, for the first six months co a yea r, his studies will take a back seat as he Aies to Sri Lanka where he \Vill be training during ilie off-season. This can only lead to greate r succes s for this affable ymmg man who lives and breathes the sport.

Kevi n has been b lessed by a family mat understands his passion. Hi s father Vernon who is Sri Lankan and mother Lethi who is I ndia.n, bod1 love die sport and have SL1pported and nurtured Kevin's love for it. His brod1er George has alwars been a great foil to the rising young star, d espite ilieir being man y a fight between ilie two owing to a game of backyard cricket! Whilst thanking h is family, Kevin also mentioned some o f the other people who have helped him i ndefinite ly who have shaped lus actions today. They include Owen Mottau, cir. Rene Ferdinancl s, Ra vi Rathnayaka, 1vfanjula Munasinha, Duleep Saraweera, Adrian Jones, Peter i\failiison, Johann Jayasiol1a, Kirk and JuLian Lawrence, Aldo Cerner and Dr. ihal Henatigala. Perhaps ic is coo early to predict but given K e,Ti n 's passion it may not be long before he can keep that promise to his father We all wait for that day

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