Need to get the right combination

Sri Lanka lost the first ODI against Bangladesh by 33 runs. The second ODI will be played today in Dhaka followed by the final game on Friday. 

by Rex Clementine

Sri Lanka are languishing at 12th in the ICC Cricket World Cup Super League with minus two points and at this moment automatic qualification looks a dream for the sport’s showpiece event. These are tough times no doubt to be in selectors’ boots. They have made the call to axe a whole lot of seniors and need to show faith in the young charges they have chosen. In the meantime, the team also needs to pick up a few points to improve their poor ranking. Bangladesh were the ideal opponents to get some points to your name for England and India over the next two months would prove to be formidable opponents.

If Sri Lanka can win the next two games, they can move up to number nine; ahead of teams like Zimbabwe and Ireland. If they don’t, they have got to bite the bullet and face harsher realities having let grass grow under their feet having ignored vital aspects like fitness, fielding and discipline.

There were some glaring errors during the first ODI that Sri Lanka lost by 33 runs and of the main aspects was that the team got the combination wrong.

Opening batsman Danushka Gunathilaka played so well with an array of attacking shots – there were five boundaries in his 21 – but he perished playing one too many drives. On a track where the ball was not coming onto the bat the batsmen were struggling with their timing. More than the drive, the sweep and the reverse sweep would have been an ideal tool on this track. Talking of the sweep, there’s no better batsman to execute it than Niroshan Dickwella.

His mannerisms at times can be irritating but Dickwella can be such an important asset to the team with his ability to put the bowlers off their rhythm with his unconventional batting. Why he has not played an ODI since March 2019 is beyond us.

One of the things that they had identified in our ODI cricket was that the team had not been able to utilize the quota of 50 overs often. So they came up with a solution. It was to pick someone to bat through the innings. The person who was chosen to do that job was Dimuth Karunaratne. His calming influence in leading the side was an additional bonus. He did such a wonderful job having brought together a team that was in disarray.

Karunaratne was in the form of his life having amassed 427 runs in three innings during the recent Test series in Kandy. His numbers were Bradmansque but for some strange reason he was kicked out of the ODI side. Nobody had told him that his strike rate was poor in limited over cricket. Nobody had told him that he had to play a few attacking shots. All what he had been told was to bat through the innings and he finds himself out of the side for doing exactly what was asked of him to do. It does not make sense.

Sri Lanka opted to play two wrist spinners in the opening match. There’s Dhananjaya de Silva too. He was the pick of the bowlers claiming three wickets with his off-spin. Should they have played Ramesh Mendes is an interesting question. Bangladesh are depending heavily on spin. Should you bring your specialist off-spinner into the side is something for the authorities to ponder. Or should he replace Lakshan Sandakan? The left-arm wrist spinner goes for runs. That doesn’t matter if he can pick up three of four wickets. If he does not, since you already have a wrist spinner in Wanindu Hasaranga, you need to look at the other Mendis.

It was a brilliant show by Hasaranga. His clean hitting was so good to watch and had the top order stretched a few partnerships, Sri Lanka could have got over the line. There are those who are talking that Hasaranga should bat up the order. He is someone who is ideal for number seven; a good finisher. Let him not do more than what he could chew.