Third Year Player, right hand middle order batsman, right arm leg spinner, close in specialist fielder and all rounder, under 23 Negombo Cricket Club player Sammu Jeewaka Shashin excelled for his Alma Mater Devapathiraja National School, Ratgama.
He commenced his schooling at Siri Sumana Vidyalaya, Ratgama and as a ten year old player he represented his school in a thirty over Big Match against Sri Sumangala Vidyalaya, Hikkaduwa and his first coach and Master in Charge and Prefect of Games was Rashan Madushanka and from there he shifted to his present school in the year 2009.
He attended cricket practices under former Devapathiraja Vidyalaya cricketer Ranjan Lasantha de Silva and got selected to the under 13 team and in his first year he scored 170 runs and bagged 12 scalps. In his second year he got 320 runs with one half century and captured 18 wickets and in his final year he was the Vice Captain of the team and scored 525 runs with five fifties and captured 25 wickets and his captain was Pavan Sandesh.
In his first year in the under 15 he collected 323 runs with four fifties and captured 35 wickets with two five wicket hauls. As the deputy skipper in his second year he scored 512 runs with a century against St. Aloysius College, Galle and collected three fifties too. In the same year he played for the Southern Province in the Provincial Tournament. Playing in the under 17 team he scored 220 runs and there was no tournament in his second year due to Covid 19. As an under 13 player he was able to fit in to the first eleven team in 2016 and in his first year he scored 107 runs and captured 28 wickets and played for the Big Match against their arch rivals Madampa Central and earned the Man of the Match Award and the Best Bowlers Award for claiming 6 for 22 runs.
The following year he collected 520 runs with three half centuries and bagged 35 scalps with two five wicket hauls and played in the Big Match and the One Dayer. In the year 2018/19 he scored 981 runs with 238 runs against St. Mary’s College, Kegalle and became the first ever cricketer from Devapathiraja College to notch up a double century in the Under 19 Division One Tournament. Other cricketers to achieve this rare feet were Raveen Yasas in the under 19 Division Two and Dilshan Kanchana in the under 19 Division Three tournament and also he scored a century and five fifties. Due to these performances he was selected to Galle District Team and was a member of the 20 member squad of Southern Province for the Provincial Tournament and that year too he played in the Big Match and the One Dayer.
Last season he collected 520 runs with four half centuries and there was no Big Match or One Dayer due to the prevailing situation in the country. Last year he represented the under 23 team of Negombo Cricket Club under Channa Fernando and his skipper was Hareen Buddhika. In the forthcoming season he will be playing under Sudeera Weerarathne and his deputy will be Pavan Sandesh. Their team consists of ten players who represented them in last years team and it will be of immense benefit. Jeewaka has another three years to represent his Alma Mater and the support, guidance and help received from the Principal Mr. Alwis and from his coach Ranjan Lasantha and Kushil Gunasekera of the Foundation of Goodness of Seenigama paved the way for his success.
