Hope springs eternal

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Category: Russel Arnold Column

Published on Wednesday, 01 February 2012 16:48

Written by Russel Arnold

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Chasing down 300+ twice which is no easy task against a quality South African attack and an exceptional fielding side even though Dale Steyn’s absence was a factor, it is not an achievement that you can brush a side easily.

What was also significant was seeing the youngsters taking responsibility and showing the skill and adaptability required. The key factor here though is going into the last 2 ODI’s in South Africa, the visiting Sri Lankans had nothing to lose and hence there was no pressure. It was all about playing the brand of attacking cricket Sri Lankans always talk about and voila the results appear. This type of performance needs to be put together when the pressure is on and at the crunch times.  If they are able to convert thus Sri Lanka will be a force to reckon with. It is another step taken but it was quite evident what can be achieved if the right attitude is maintained.

It also showed what Sri Lanka had been lacking; the starts of Dilshan. When he gets runs,he gets them swift and lets the other batsmen play their own game and not pay too much attention to the run rate. He also puts bowlers under pressure who will then be bowling to survive and not attack. The fielders unwittingly sit back on the circle allowing more quick singles and not choking the batsmen. So lots of positives because of that man T M Dilshan. Chandimal excites me with the maturity he is showing and we all know that he can bash it around too while Thirimanne displayed a very cool head under pressure and should be kept there to build on his success. The bowling looked decent and though you may argue that they conceded 300 twice, it was great batting conditions coupled with some fine batting by the South Africans and our batsmen scored off their bowlers as well.  The only real concern was that Sri Lanka never maintained any decent standards in the field.

Bloemfontein (the 3rd ODI)was the big disappointment as here was a real chance to keep the series alive. A stop start batting performance gave Sri Lanka 266 runs but should have easily been more. Though Sri Lanka fielded poorly again they were in with a shout when the rains came, one wicket would have been all they needed with Malinga having plenty overs you have to fancy your chances against the tail. Though the visiting dressing room was inquiring about the weather from the ground authorities there was no indication of it until it came down, if not we would have seen Malinga brought in earlier to control the situation. The home team on the other hand seemed to have got the thumbs up and got a move on just in time. Looking up in to the dark night skies just does not divulge any clues unlike during the day.

The word was also around though you do wonder how; about what might be when the team returned home. Geoff Marsh who took over a week before the team flew to the UAE to face Pakistan and then to South Africa, was the first causality.

You do feel for him as he did not have much time to make an impact and while on tour it’s always very difficult to work players needs. At the end of the tour though there were positives but a change is what the administration had decided on.

This type of thing is not unusual in professional sport and you do see it happen all the time. You are expected to deliver right away. The speculation started during the 3rd ODI when the news got out that Graeme Ford had resigned from his role at the Dolphins in Durban to take up an international coaching role and people were guessing it was Sri Lanka.

Ford was in Sri Lanka in August 2011 and it did seem he had got the job but could not make it at that stage for whatever reason. I did meet him in Colombo on the eve of the 1st test between Sri Lanka and Australia and had quite an interesting conversation. He seemed to know all the ins and outs of Sri Lankan Cricket and had done quite a bit of home work on the players too. It was only because the Ford deal failed that Marsh came on the scene. Well he is finally here to follow up on his plans.

I think it's a good move for Dilshan to step down and focus on his batting though the only criticism I have of him is as captain, is he did not lead from the front in terms of scoring runs. He did seem to handle the team well tactically but it would have helped if he had led with runs too.  It was a tough time to lead with all the changes happening in team structures, legends going out and new boys coming in, so many different coaches to work with and also your main players not performing. But yet I thought he held up well and was up for the fight. Even Mahela Jayawardena who is captain again did not back Dilshan up with runs. With Dilshan’s horror-deemed period at the top ending he actually passes on a more confident and a unit which has more direction to Jayawardena.

In Australia, Sri Lanka can expect similar conditions to South Africa, but the wickets in Australia will offer slightly more pace and bounce. The opposition will be hard to beat especially the hosts as they have renewed confidence and I do think they do have a very good pace attack and plenty of depth too. A place in the final is realistic as I expect Sri Lanka to pip India who will struggle in these conditions too and I just feel Sri Lanka are better equipped to the needs of the game at present.

I am very happy to see Welegedara in the ODI team because he has been the work horse over the last few months and done a great job. So giving him an opportunity to be a part of the full set up should give him more confidence and should make him a better player.  Maharoof who has not lived up to expectations in the past, forces his way back in on strong domestic performances. Kosala Kulasekera got the nod ahead of Maharoof  for the tours prior to this was based on very good domestic and “A” team performances over quite a long period of time. However, in the 3 matches he played in South Africa he has batted twice and scored 19 each and not taken any wickets. He needed to give or show a lot more with the ball. Maharoof has the ability to really frustrate you as he is so talented but  some how finds ways and reasons to float around than actually grab that no7 position and be one of Sri Lanka’s leading match winners. It is vital that Sri Lanka find a good seaming all rounder to balance the team and have an attacking edge to it especially on their travels and more importantly with the new rules (two new balls at either end)in place it would give the captain more options.

Sri Lank are now in Australia with new leadership but more importantly with players showing signs of belonging in the big league. With the seniors of course it's a matter of getting the hunger and priorities back, but with the juniors it’s a case of making a name for themselves. A good balance does exist but it’s only with team work that Sri Lanka can make progress.

 

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