"Sri Lanka deserved the victory of this year’s World Twenty-20 title. But unfortunately they lost the crucial final to Pakistan. As a team they kept their winning momentum right throughout the series and they just could not do it at the finals. This is cricket all about."

Legendary cricket personality and former Australian cricket Captain Steve Waugh who was appointed as brand ambassador for global education giant ‘Navitas’ and the ‘Australian College of Business and Technology’ (ACBT) told this at a media conference held last Tuesday (23) in Colombo.

ACBT partnered with ‘Navitas – Australia,’ reportedly an internationally acknowledged leader in global education, to provide opportunities for students all over the world to choose a ‘Navitas Pathway Programme’ every year as their preferred option for pursuing higher studies. And it’ll also be for preparing for their careers through an extensive global network of colleges and institutes, most of them located at campuses and operating in association with leading partner universities in Australia, United Kingdom, Canada, Africa and Sri Lanka.

"Apart from the excellent leadership qualities in Steve, his dedication towards the poor and the charity works he has already done for the poor, following his retirement from international cricket, led us to make him our brand ambassador," said Dr. M.C. Thilakarathne, Director, ACBT.

The right-handed gutsy batsman commenced his Test career in 1985 against India. Then he began his ODI career in 1986 for Australia. During his tenure as a batting all-rounder for his motherland, Steve, nicknamed ‘Tugga,’ made 10,927 Test runs while in ODIs, he made 7,569 runs.

He played his last Test, that too was against India in 2004, and retired maintaining a sound batting average of 51.06. Waugh took over the Captaincy of the Aussie one-day side in 1997–98, following Mark Taylor’s retirement at the end of the ’98–99 season. Waugh replaced Taylor as the Test Captain, beginning with a tour of the Caribbean.

It is widely known that Waugh helps to raise funds for a leper children’s colony, "Udayan," in Calcutta. This type of activity has been somewhat novel for an Australian cricketer. He also encourages his players to learn something about the countries they visit and play in, presumably to reduce the siege mentality felt by some previous Australian teams playing in south Asia, but also seemingly for a genuine desire to use cricket to build bridges.

In Australia, Steve is a Patron of ‘Allambie Heights Conductive Education Unit’ and ‘Camp Quality.’ Steve wishes to broaden his philanthropic activities at home and as a result, the ‘Steve Waugh Foundation – Australia’ has been established.

The purpose of the Steve Waugh Foundation in Australia is expressed in the phrase "Somewhere to Turn."

It captures Steve’s philosophical reasons for establishing a foundation and work according to his feelings about what he wants to achieve. The Foundation is focused on making a real difference in the lives of beneficiaries.

Steve is determined that the ‘Steve Waugh Foundation – Australia’ stands alone from large organisations. It is all about being there for people who really have nowhere to turn to.

There are many individuals in Australia who have illness and afflictions that don’t meet any set of criteria for various reasons and as a result are unable to qualify for assistance from the government or established charitable organisations.