Sri Lanka Cricket has renamed its top domestic women’s tournament the “Gwen Herat Memorial Trophy” in honour of the late founding president of the Sri Lanka Women’s Cricket Association, the governing body announced on Monday.
The Major Club Women’s 50-Over Tournament will carry the new name from 2026 onwards. SLC said the renaming recognises Gwen Herat’s outstanding service in establishing the Sri Lanka Women’s Cricket Association in 1997, which she led as founding president.
“The significant role played by the late Mrs. Gwen Herat in laying the foundation for women’s cricket is well remembered by the cricketing fraternity. By naming a tournament in her honor, Sri Lanka Cricket aims to preserve her legacy for future generations,” SLC Honorary Secretary Bandula Dissanayake said in a statement.
The Herat family presented a trophy to Sri Lanka Cricket which will be awarded to the champions of future editions. The handover was carried out by Mrs. Herat’s daughters Shamarra Herat and Parveen Herat, and her son Avancka Herat. The presentation was received by Dissanayake at SLC headquarters in the presence of CEO Ashley de Silva, with distinguished guests Chandra Schaffter and Hemaka Amarasuriya, and SLC officials Chinthaka Edirimanne (Head of National Cricket Operations) and Upul Nawaratne Bandara (Head of Marketing).
The renaming decision lands in the same week as a leadership transition signalled at the top of Sri Lanka Cricket, with SLC President Shammi Silva expected to resign on Wednesday — making the Herat memorial gesture one of the final formal acts of the current SLC executive in the women’s game.
