The Royal-Thomian ‘Battle of the Blues,’ the second-longest uninterrupted school cricket series in the world and an encounter which survived two world wars, two insurgencies, a gruesome 30-year civil war, and a global pandemic, will see its 146th edition unfold at the Singhalese Sports Club (SSC) Grounds from 6-8 March. 

The Royalists are led by Ramiru Perera while Kavindu Dias leads the Thomians.

The blue riband event of the island nation’s cricketing calendar has been attended by a plethora of legendary personas who played for Royal and S. Thomas’ who later went on to shape Sri Lanka’s socioeconomic, political, and global landscapes.  

S. Thomas’ College Acting Warden Asanka Perera, speaking at the launch of this year’s big match in Colombo recently, made a noteworthy comment: “To the two teams, this game is yours, and don’t let all the fancy events take your attention away from that. A lot of external pressures surround the Royal-Thomian, but for the 22 of you, this is your game to battle it out in the middle according to the rules of the game. In the middle, you battle your heart out, but off the field, you come off as friends.”

A win or a loss is only a result of how the game is played. The Roy-Tho has been a place where battles are fought in the field and lifelong friendships made at the end of it.

The 48th Mustangs Trophy limited-over encounter will be played on 15 March at the SSC.

PHOTOS © STC MEDIA UNIT, ISHAN SANJEEWA, THEPAPARE