Sri Lankans 'crestfallen' after World Cup defeat

It was so much near yet so far, this was how the Sri Lankan media described the country's defeat in the cricket World Cup final at the hands of India.

"Crestfallen and sorely disappointed, most Sri Lankans would wake up today trying to reconcile with the fact that the national team emerged second best," the independent 'Sunday Times' newspaper said in its editorial, commenting on the team's six-wicket loss to the Dhoni brigade last night. While opining that Sri Lanka had an easier passage to the finals than India, it said "India are the deserved winners, to them go the fruits of victory and all the accolades with it". There was no disgrace in the defeat. "They lost last night to the top ranked cricketing nation before a hugely partisan and frenzied crowd, and away from home, and there is no dishonour in losing, the paper said.

However, it called for a probe of the defeat. "The time is now opportune to venture into an assessment of sports administration in Sri Lanka," the paper said.

It argued that "cricket has been run by successive interim committees, most reeking with corruption, nepotism and political interference and mismanagement".

Another newspaper 'Sunday Observer' said it was so much near yet so far for Sri Lanka which emerged runner-up the second time in a row.

Though it described Sri Lanka's 274 for 6 in 50 overs as a challenging total and hailed Vice Captain Mahela Jayawardene for his blistering century, the paper said Gautam Gambhir's brave 97 runs resurrected the Indian innings following which it was too late for Sri Lanka to bounce back.

"Nevertheless, it was a great performance by Sri Lanka to enter two successive Finals in 2007 and 2011 and to finish runners up at the World Cup," the paper said.

Ahead of the crucial match at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, excitement over the prospect of a World Cup win had reached fever pitch in all parts of Sri Lanka.

"Although the match was being played in far away Mumbai, one could be forgiven for thinking that the biggest battle in world cricket was taking place in Sri Lanka - such was the enthusiasm of the local cricket fans," the report said, noting that this was the first time that two Asian cricketing nations featured in the final of the tournament's 36-year history.

Thousands of fans here had flocked to the Galle Face Green to catch the match on a giant screen and there was a carnival-like atmosphere throughout the Sri Lankan innings.

Screaming fans waved the Lion Flag and applauded every run and wicket taken by the Sri Lankan team. Most of them had the flag painted on their faces. Similar scenes were witnessed at other venues in the city, where large LED screens had been erected.

City hotels reported full bookings at open air facilities which showed the game on giant screens. Several companies had set up large screens in key provincial cities as well.

Crowds also thronged electronic shops which had a large number of LCD TVs tuned to the match to catch a glimpse of the action.

A large number of buses, three wheelers and cars throughout the country sported the Lion Flag.

Viewers in the country's north, now free of LTTE, were also able to catch the action for the first time as national broadcaster Rupavahini had activated the Kokavil transmission tower, the report said.

However, the match ended on a disappointing note for Sri Lankans, who were hoping that this time the team would bring the coveted cup home.