COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP):

THE WORLD Cup runner-up Sri Lankan cricket team was honoured with an elaborate ceremony and a parade through the capital when its players returned home, yesterday.

Traditional dancers and drummers performed near the tarmac as the players descended from a Qatar Airways flight, and they were draped with garlands by Sports Minister Bandula Basnayake and other officials, amid light showers.

Buddhist monks, Hindu and Catholic priests, and Muslim clerics performed services to bless the team.

The players were later paraded around the capital, Colombo, in a luxury bus escorted by scores of armed soldiers.

Cricket is a passion in this war-torn island nation and thousands of people gathered along the 30-kilometre (18-mile) stretch of road from the airport to the heart of the city, despite a heavy downpour.

The rain hampered the main outdoor celebration, but a ceremony was held inside Sri Lanka's cricket board.

"You have brought honour and glory to our country and the whole nation owes you for your wonderful performance," Basnayake told a gathering of cricketers, relatives and fans.

Team captain Mahela Jayawardene thanked his team's fans, saying their support was its greatest strength.