Full moon rules out play

The full moon is a holy day for Sinhalese Buddhists

The first Test between Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe will include a rest day on the Sunday, because of a new government rule based on Buddhist tradition which bans sport under the full moon.

December 30 - which would have been the fourth day of the match - is the same day as the full moon on the island, and there will be no play in the Test, which will now stretch to a conclusion on New Year's Day.

The previous government in Sri Lanka was defeated in elections on 5 December.

But they had wooed the support of the powerful Buddhist clergy by decreeing that, from 17 November, no sports would be played on full moon days. And there has been no move to overturn the rule.

Offices closed

Sinhalese Buddhists, who make up 76 per cent of the population in Sri Lanka, believe that the founder of their religion was born on a full moon day.

When it occurs, offices are closed, butchers do not sell meat and bars do not serve alcohol.

Wearing white clothes, believers visit some of the Buddhist shrines that are sprinkled across a country of 18.6 million inhabitants.

From a cricketing point of view, Sri Lanka should go into the first Test with total confidence after a 3-0 series whitewash against the West Indies under their belts.

The squad is injury free, bowlers Chaminda Vaas and Muttiah Muralitharan are in top form, and the batsmen are forging telling telling partnerships.