Cricket World's Island Diary No.2

Michael Vaughan sent the England rugby squad a good luck message prior to their epic win over Australia at the weekend. Although Jonny Wilkinson couldn't quite manage to knock up a cricket score, England will be hoping for the some of the same during the Test series here. However, the last time England's rugby stars defeated Australia (Melbourne, 25 june) England's cricketers then took a hammering by South Africa, thanks to Graeme Smith's 259 at Lord's.
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A rich or successful Sri Lankan will not always succeed in love, if the families who arrange marriages have any say in the matter. Each week the country's wealthy society eagerly awaits the Sunday Observer - the leading English-language newspaper - on this beautiful island. But on reading the 'Marriage Proposals' section, you would have thought that a person's birth sign was the most important factor in a country where families pay close attention to caste, dowry and education. One recent prospective parent seeked an English-educated businessman for their attractive daughter, adding: 'caste immaterial if horoscope and general background exceptionally compatible.'
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Sri Lanka's betting industry doesn't just amount to how many wickets Murali might take over a Test series. Giant satellite dishes are popping up all over Colombo such is the flourishing popularity on many sports including horse racing. But it is not Sri Lanka's top jockeys taking on the pace up in the hill country's Nuwara Eliya course that is the punter's daily talking point, more likely whether Nick Littmoden can keep up his early season form or if AP McCoy can bag another in the 3:15 at Chepstow.