|
|
 |
 |
| Sunday, 5 January 2003 |
 |
|
 |
Sports |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
|
Can Lankans bounce back? by Srian Obeyesekere Like the saying, `too many cooks spoil the soup' are too many experts a contributing factor to Sri Lanka's decline in the one-day arena. The short version of cricket in which this island nation was once a dominant force. In the wake of the thrashings the Lankans have undergone, first in South Africa 1-4, and in the ongoing VB Triangular in Australia suffering three straight defeats, there have been much rumblings flitting in that all has not been well within the team. Of discord where the team management has come in for criticism over selections. For one, the South African tour from the Test tour last November-December saw as many as five players, some of whom were newcomers on whom the national selectors placed faith, just going and coming back like tourists sightseeing without playing in a single match. But what took the cake was the confining of opening batsman, Avishka Gunawardena to cold storage. Worst starts For a tour that was looked forward to with much anticipation in the build-up to February's World Cup in South Africa this was one of the worst starts. For South Africa had been seen as the ideal ground to finding the right combinations in the vital departments such as batting and bowling. The latter importantly getting priority when the squad was chosen for the fast, bouncy wickets on which pace bowlers thrive. But most of the pacies whom the selectors bestowed faith in looking for the right mix for the World Cup not been used must be seen as a wasteful exercise. Not the least much foreign exchange expended with fruitless results at a time other countries have been making the most of available talent through such resources like expertise and technology for the extravaganza. Some of the lamentable news coming from South Africa was the firm decision of the tour management to keep Avishka Gunawardena in cold storage throughout. This was by all stretch of imagination a raw deal for a player who lost his place in the team over a year ago at a time his batting seemed to have peaked when the Kehelgamuwa selection committee was replaced by Tissera and company. For the record, Gunawardena had at the time gone through the mill of a thorough work out in conditioning himself reducing some 11 kilos, courtesy physio Alex Kontouri. He was a different batsman, more disciplined in strokeplay while his fielding, said to be the reason for been kept out in South Africa, had improved as a close catcher. Defunct mechanism The comparative drawback from such ad hoc decisions as against other leading countries like Australia and South Africa which fine tune abundant talent through a streamlined mechanism is the Ian Harveys, Shane Watsons, Andy Bickels, Mathew Haydens, Jacques Kallis', Andrew Halls and even skipper Shaun Pollock, who having started as a bowler, has honed his batting to be counted as a worthy allrounder. The contrasting side effects of Lankan cricket has been that the mechanism more often than not brakes down on the wayside. Look at the abundance of school talent that has fed the game with a host of names which never made it. Some making the grade at school level but not heard of after. Some others making it to the clubs and been just confined there. To digest Hemal Mendis, Waruna Waragoda, Saman Jayantha, Suranga Wijenaike, Nimesh Perera, Bhathiya Perera, Anil Redeegammanagedera and Hemantha Wickramaratne among a host of others. Interestingly, there has been no expert to see the potential allround talent in Redeegammanagedera from Mahinda College, Galle who is a fair batsman and bowls some really heady medium pace stuff which could have been harnessed on the allround aspects of a Harvey or Watson. Unfortunately he was not born in Australia or South Africa to find deserving reward. The same could be said of Wickramaratne who has been an outstanding performer with the bat at club level, this year alone having churned out five centuries, but forever kept in the cold. A clear reflection of the bankruptcy of the mechanism which has not been helped along by the constantly strife torn Cricket Board since 1995 when factions began clashing as to who should run it ending up in legal wrangle after wrangle. And the authorities keep lamenting that there is no sufficient input of off spinning talent coming from the schools. So much so that redundancy in this department has sadly left Sri Lankan cricket stranded with just Muttiah Muralitheran and nobody to take over from a bowler who has ironically become to be acclaimed by Wisden as the greatest bowler of alltime. The dearth was glaringly heightened when injury sidelined Muralitheran during middle of the South African tour, and for the first leg of the Aussie tour. New hope Reflectively, it is hoped Sri Lanka could rejenuvate even at this late juncture by the return of two of its heaviest hitters in Muralitheran and Aravinda de Silva. There is a twinkle of hope that the latter, master batsman, de Silva could work himself up to the type of form he is capable of in delivering at a time the country needs his services as never before to beef up a fragile batting department ahead of the World Cup. Here, it is worth reminiscing de Silva's heroic match winning century against Australia in the 1995-'96 World Cup final which heralded the turn of a new chapter in the country's cricket. That was an innings of the highest class when the chips were down with both Jayasuriya and Kaluwitharana back in the pavilion with the total only 12. De Silva is known to give his best when the chips are down and if his eve of departure comments to the `Sunday Observer' of last week that he expects to brush up the loopholes in his batting in Australia ahead of the World Cup is anything to go by, local fans could keep their fingers crossed that it will be `commeth the hour, commeth the man'in de Silva in what would be another record appearance at the showpeice of one-day cricket. In Muralitheran is the depth of not only the maestro that he is with the ball, but also as a motivator on the field where the team must certainly have missed his catching flair where dropped catches have glaringly showed up the team's incompetence in this vital department at that level of the game which once made us world beaters. He maybe a tailender with the bat, but the gump to strike bowlers over the top has indeed seen Muralitharan's worthy salt with the ability to defend when required as demonstrated by that 27-run knock as last man in ensuring Hashan Tillekeratne was not stranded on a magical century having walked in when the left hander was on 92. The return of Muralitharan and de Silva could be spiced with the recall of Gunawardena. That is if Gunawardena gets the exposure required to get into full throttle by February instead of further messing up by the team management whose stand in not playing him in South Africa on excuses of his fielding would be made to look foolhardy going by the number of dropped catches by some of the specialist fielders like Russel Arnold who let off regulation ones straight to the hand. This drawback must further reflect on how rehearsed this department has been of late adding to the mess. De Silva and Gunawardena could lend the tonic to the batting which has been shouldered almost singlehandedly by Marvan Atapattu who has shown touches of brilliance. The conjecture would be whether Gunawardena or Tillekeratne would form the nucleus. While Tillekeratne is capable of bolstering a shaky middle order, the hard hitting Gunawardena could be the trump card if given time to get into his stride. The bowling department at long last seems in order in the four pacies spearheaded by Chaminda Vaas with Pulasthi Gunaratne, Dilhara Fernando and Prabath Nissanka. But no bowling department would be complete if Dilhara is going to continue with his costly no-ball exercise which it is time should have been sorted out by now. Nissanka has developed the bouncer to good effect and could get into full steam by February. Winless, the second leg of the VB triangular which gets under way on January 9 Thursday with Sri Lanka taking on Australia at Adelaide will certainly be cricket which will determine Sri Lanka's fortunes as much as the most looked to by local fans who will be hoping the Lankans will bounce back. |
|
News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security Produced by Lake House |
