St. Peter’s rallies to retain Fernando-Ernest Shield

St. Peter’s College Bambalapitiya clinched victory in the second annual Royal-St. Peter’s tennis encounter, defeating Royal College Colombo 3-2 in a thrilling comeback to secure the Arjun Fernando-Percy Ernest Challenge Shield at the St. Peter’s College Tennis Complex, Bambalapitiya.

The first singles match saw St. Peter’s Ashlin De Silva face Royal’s vice-captain and Under-18 national champion, Methvan Wijemanne. In a close battle, Methvan claimed victory with a 9-7 score. Royal further strengthened their lead as the doubles team of Jamal Sabry and Kavish Maddumage defeated St. Peter’s duo Karthi Udayachandran and Manesh Kajan, ending the match 9-2.

Down at 0-2, St. Peter’s needed a spark, which came in the second singles match when Ashwin Denver faced Royal’s captain, Thilina Dissanayake. Ashwin’s resilience led to a 9-7 victory, keept St. Peter’s hopes alive. The momentum shifted as the Peterite second doubles team, Kubherane Mayooran and Ajesh Kajan, claimed a 9-6 win over Royal’s Sasen Premarathne and Bhishman Balaratnarajah, tying the score at 2-2.

The decisive match saw St. Peter’s star, Ganuka Fernando, ranked as the nation’s top Under-16 player, take on Royal’s Ashmal Billal. Ganuka delivered a commanding 9-2 victory, sealing the win for St. Peter’s with a 3-2 result and securing their second consecutive triumph in this annual encounter.

This year’s victory was a proud moment for St. Peter’s, who overcame a 0-2 deficit. The team was guided by head coach Dinith Pathiraja and assistant coaches Srinath Udayachandran, Nipun Fernando, Pasindu Sampath, Rizmi Mohamed, and Asanka Pradeep.

Led by captain Manesh Kajan and vice-captain Karthi Udayachandran, the victorious Peterite squad included players Ganuka Fernando, Ashlin De Silva, Kubherane Mayooran, Ashwin Denver, Ajesh Kajan, J. Paul, P. Pragarshan, and Sandul Kumarasinghe.

 Source:Daily News