Why bounce Ashantha de Mel?

Cricket undoubtedly is the number one game in the country. Whether one likes it or not, there is no getting away from this fact.

Every move made by Sri Lanka Cricket or its committees comes in for very close scrutiny from every sports fan and the public.

It is no different when it comes to the Selection Committee of Cricket appointed by the Minister of Sport Gamini Lokuge and to whom the selectors are responsible.The present Selection Committee is - Ashantha de Mel, Chairman, Don Anurasiri, Anura Tennekoon, Chaminda Mendis and Vinodhan John. The selections how ever good and how ever well thought out seldom receive commendation.

Collective responsibility

When the selectors sit and pick a captain or say a team, it is collective responsibility and has a majority vote if any differences exist. Then when things or their decisions are queried or discussed, the man who is lynched is Ashantha de Mel. Now that is inexplicable. De Mel is not a one man selection committee.

The recent selections to face Pakistan in the Test series and the One-day series did not go down with a certain section. While we have nothing against that section, because they have the right to question, query and discuss the pros and cons of the selections, they must be fair in their criticism and not criticize for the sake of doing it.

What is further inexplicable is that it is De Mel who is nailed, while little is said about his co-selectors. Obviously those who take De Mel to task can be bracketed as the ignorant few or those who have a grudge against De Mel.

From the time he donned the selectors pads as chairman, De Mel has copped a big share of blame and criticism. But what is admirable is that De Mel is not unduly worried or shaken, but continues to play a straight bat, what was taught to him when he was knee high to a bat.

Illustrious career

I have known De Mel from the time he sported Isipathana College colours before moving to Royal College, then to the Maharaja Organization on leaving school and continuing his illustrious cricket career that culminated with him winning national colours.

At the Maharaja Organization he was given all the encouragement to further his talent by its Chairman and Managing Director R. Rajamahendren that cricket loving and former Vice President of BCCSL during the rein of Gamini Dissanayake as President.

He was the fastest opening bowler going at that time and in addition his batting and fielding was top class and he made it to the Sri Lanka team for the first ever Test against England after the country won Test status.

He made it to the 1983 World Cup in England and I was there when he had a match bag of five wickets against New Zealand in Derbyshire which helped Sri Lanka win that match.

Express pace

In addition to his express pace that had many a batsman running for cover, what I remember is the magnificent century he made in the Gopalan Trophy game against Madras at the Colombo Oval. He came late in the batting order and immediately took the attack of the opponents by the scruff of its neck and wrung it all corners of the field to hit, what must be one of the best knocks played at the Oval.

So critics, when they discuss team or individual selections next time, spare a thought for this former great cricketer who is doing things, not for himself but for the further progress of the game in the country.And he is not doing it alone.

'DOOSRA' - a chuck

Former Australian spin greats are convinced that the 'Doosra' is an illegal delivery. They reckon that the off spinner's 'other one' the 'DOOSRA' could not be delivered by a finger spinner without it being chucked' and was thus against cricket rules.

The Aussie spin greats who were in unanimous agreement that the 'DOOSRA' is a chuck were Ashley Mallett, Shane Warne, Stuart MacGill, Jim Higgs, Peter Philpott, Gavin Robertson and Terry Jenner.

These champion Aussie spinners who conducted a 'spin summit' in Brisbane, concluded that the 'DOOSRA' cannot be bowled legally and there was no place for it to be taught in Australia.

Former Pakistan off spinner Saqlain Mushtaq gave birth to this deliver and it has since been copied by Sri Lanka' s Muttiah Muralitharan, India's Harbhajan Singh, Pakistan's Shoaib Malik and Sajeed Ajmal and South Africa's Johann Botha.

'Doosra' a Urudu term

The word 'DOOSRA' stems from a Urdu term for a delivery that spins away from a right-hander, and not like a conventional off-spinner which comes into the batsman.

Ashley Mallett, a former Aussie Test off-spinner and now an author, wrote in the 'Adelaide Review' that there was unanimous agreement that the off-spinner's 'other one', the 'DOOSRA', should not be coached in Australia. I have never seen anyone actually bowl the 'DOOSRA'. It has to be a chuck.

Continuing Mallet wrote - Until such time as the ICC declares that all manner of chucking is legal in the game of cricket I refuse to coach the 'DOOSRA'. All at the 'Spin Summit' agreed.

Special panel

How come then that the ICC human movement specialist panel cleared Muralitharan, Harbhajan Singh and Shoaib Malik after the legitimacy of their 'DOOSRA' was called into question?

It is also amusing to know that South African off-spinner Johann Botha who was reported for bowling the 'DOOSRA' was ruled illegal by the ICC and he was warned against bowling that particular delivery in international cricket.

How come that all others bowling the 'DOOSRA' were cleared and not Botha?