Sports
Sri Lanka will be a force to be reckoned with next year – Darren Sammy
Rex Clementine in Dubai
There’s nothing spectacular about Darren Sammy the cricketer; just one five-wicket haul to his credit and no half-centuries in T-20 cricket. But there’s something special about Darren Sammy, the captain. No cricket captain has won two T-20 World Cups as Sammy has done in 2012 (Colombo) and in 2016 (Calcutta). When West Indies stunned Sri Lanka in the 2012 final at RPS, 20 million Sri Lankans went to bed thinking it was a bad dream. But the next morning, the fans had got over the defeat. There’s no harm in losing to West Indies. There’s certainly no harm in losing to a side that is captained by Darren Sammy, one of cricket’s most loved guys.
“I will never forget that World Cup final. We defended a small target of 140. I actually felt for the Sri Lankan fans. You see most of the Asian teams they support their team first and then they support West Indies.” Sammy recalled during an interview with a group of Sri Lankan journalists.
“But you know what happened at the next World Cup in Bangladesh. Sri Lanka knocked us off in the semis on Duckworth Lewis. Mahela and Sanga had announced their retirements. So I could sense the Gods were smiling on them. You remember that hailstorm in Dhaka. Just out of the blues it came. It was Sanga and Mahela’s time to enjoy. They have been good servants of the game of cricket and the cricketing gods were not going to let them down,” Sammy added.
Since winning that 2014 World Cup, Sri Lanka’s slide in cricket has been steep. Does their downfall surprise Sammy?
“Well, look at West Indies we have been sliding down for a longer time. The caliber of players like Mahela and Sanga it is impossible to fill those big shoes. You are not going to get another Murali. It won’t just happen like that. What you can do instead is to have a good structure and a system where youngsters will come and learn. You can help them become better cricketers. West Indies had a team that dominated for many years. But after Lara and Ambrose we are struggling. What we need to look at is how do we develop the next generation? West Indies have fallen short in doing that. If you don’t put in the work at grassroots you will struggle.”
Sammy was a commentator during the World Cup and said that he was very impressed with the young players who were on show in UAE. “Really impressed with the way Sri Lanka played. Sometimes, it is not all about winning. You could see the development and maturity among the players. I am looking forward to seeing these guys in the next World Cup. They will be a force to be reckoned with in Australia. You guys have Wanindu Hasaranga, Charith Asalanka and Pathum Nissanka. All these youngsters are superb. If you see, as the tournament progressed, they got better and better. If they go home, put in the hard yards, and show commitment they will be a powerhouse soon.”
Sammy is a popular character all over the world, but in the Caribbean, he has had a lot of criticism. It may be because he doesn’t come from one of the bigger islands. Sammy is from tiny St. Lucia, a country that has a population of less than 200,000 people. The criticism was so intense that at one point he said, ‘2000 years ago there lived a man called Jesus. He did no wrong but yet they crucified him. Who is Darren Sammy compared to him.’ It was a quote that went viral.
“That’s part of life I guess. My mother raised me in such a way that I give full credit to her. When you are in a job where it is being judged by the public, you have to expect criticism. Some of them are unfair but everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I had to learn that early. At the end of the day, I am still smiling. They didn’t break me down. To any youngster, the advice that can be given is understand the road ahead of you.”
It is an incredible stat that West Indies have never won a Test match in Sri Lanka. In the 1980s when they were cricket’s strongest force, they never toured Sri Lanka. Their first trip was in 1993 for a one-off Test and since then the teams have played in Sri Lanka on 11 occasions with Sri Lanka winning seven and four Tests being drawn.
“Sri Lanka is tough especially at home. We have always struggled to compete. I remember Brian Lara scored almost 700 runs in that 2001 series and we still lost 3-0.
West Indies are currently in Colombo for a two-match Test series that will be played in Galle. Can they reverse the trend this time? “They have the caliber of players. I expect a good series. Jason Holder is a top all-rounder and they will rely on him heavily. Interesting to see how Rostan Chase goes about things in Sri Lanka. To me, he is one of the better players of spin. In order to win cricket games in Sri Lanka, playing spin is crucial. So Chase is the key man. Craig Brathwaite, the way he bats time is going to be a crucial factor too. Then there’s Shai Hope who has returned to the side. The fast bowlers we have are pretty good and it will be an interesting series.”
Sammy has been coming to Sri Lanka since 2003 and loves the country. “Sri Lankans are very friendly, warm-hearted and genuine people who make you feel at home. The first time I went there was in 2003 with MCC Young Cricketers. I remember going up to the hills and it was the first time I saw tea plants. I had never seen tea before. It was also the first time I saw elephants. Just travelling around the coastline was superb. It was like in my hometown in St. Lucia,” Sammy concluded.
The first truly heavyweight clash of this expanded T20 World Cup format comes freighted with both history and subplots. A rematch of the 2010 World T20 final at Kensington Oval, the match pits Jos Buttler’s defending champions – who are aiming to become the first team to retain the trophy – against the Australian winning machine, victors at the 2021 edition and current world title-holders in Test and ODI cricket. And that’s before you throw in the Ashes for afters.
Already there is added pressure on England, after the rain in Bridgetown led to a share of the points in their opener against Scotland (and that having conceded 90 runs from 10 overs without taking a wicket in a tepid bowling display). Lose to their oldest rivals and it will leave their Super 8 prospects open to being waylaid by the perils of net run-rate calculations, or worse.
The Scotland match was the third abandonment in five suffered by England, after a rain-affected home series against Pakistan, which has clearly hampered their readiness for this campaign after almost six months without playing T20 together. It does not take much for a side to click in this format – and England looked in decent shape when they did get on the field against Pakistan – but Buttler will be anxious for things to go their way on Saturday, if only to avoid further questions referencing the team’s disastrous ODI World Cup defence last year.
Australia, under the laidback leadership of Mitchell Marsh would love nothing more than to add to the English sense of jeopardy – having helped bundle them out of the tournament in India on the way to taking the crown. Their head to head record is less impressive in T20 however, with England having won six of the last seven completed encounters, as well as that 2010 final.
Despite a wobble with the bat, Australia avoided mishap against Oman earlier in the week, the experience of David Warner and Marcus Stoinis shining through in difficult batting conditions. Surfaces in the Caribbean – not to mention those games staged in the USA – have already had teams scratching their heads; rather than the “slug-fest” England had prepared for, following a high-scoring tour of the Caribbean in December, it looks as if boxing smart may be the way to go.
Speaking of Warner, this could be the last time he faces up against England in national colours – and another match-winning contribution would likely reduce the chances of them meeting again in the knockouts. On the other side of the card is Jofra Archer, fresh from an emotional maiden outing at Kensington Oval and ready to take on Australia for the first time in any format since 2020. Can Mark Wood fire up England’s campaign, as he did during last summer’s Ashes? Will Pat Cummins be back to harass the old enemy once again? Seconds out, it’s almost time to rumble.
Cummins is set to return after being rested for the Oman game, which saw Mitchell Starc leave the field with cramp. Starc is understood to be fine and could keep his place – which would likely see Nathan Ellis miss out. Marsh is still not fit to bowl, with Australia likely to continue with the allrounder combination of Stoinis and Maxwell to give them cover.
Australia (probable XI): David Warner, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh (capt), Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Josh Inglis (wk), Tim David, Pat Cummins, Nathan Ellis/Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
The one change England may consider is Reece Topley coming in for Wood, with the expectation that there will be some rotation among the seamers through the course of the tournament.
England (probable XI): Phil Salt, Jos Buttler (capt & wk), Will Jacks, Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Chris Jordan, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Reece Topley/Mark Wood
[Cricinfo]
Once is coincidence, twice is a clue, and three times is proof.
To paraphrase Agatha Christie, that is the narrative around South Africa’s meeting with Netherlands at this T20 World Cup.
The Dutch beat South Africa at the 2022 tournament and ended their semi-final hopes in a match where South Africa appeared to be sleep walking, and then beat them again at the 2023 ODI World Cup, where they exposed South Africa’s vulnerability in the chase. If they to do the treble, not only will Netherlands take the lead in Group D, but they will offer conclusive evidence of the threat they pose to Full Members, especially South Africa.
Of course, it will take some doing after South Africa’s opening performance against Sri Lanka, where they reduced their opposition to their lowest T20I total and chased it down in fairly straightforward fashion thanks to the most stable middle-order of their white-ball era. In Aiden Markram, Tristan Stubbs, Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller, South Africa have bankers and big-hitters and, for this match, they also have the advantage of experience. They’ve already played at Eisenhower Park, and have first-hand knowledge that run-scoring doesn’t come easily;Klassen said they are prepared to use their “cricket brains” and play “smarter cricket”.
But the conditions could be good news for Netherlands, who are not naturally a line-up of big hitters and build their innings on a foundation of turning ones into twos. In other words, they tend to take a slightly more conservative approach to batting, which may work well here, but they’ll be wary of the uneven bounce of the surface and will have to come up with plans to counterattack especially against South Africa’s seamers. Their own bowlers were exemplary in Dallas and will look to build on that performance against a line-up that will likely be more proactive than Nepal’s, but who they have managed to keep quiet not once, but twice in the past. Third time’s the charm, they say.
Anrich Nortje’s stunning return to form against Sri Lanka means South Africa may not have to tinker with the bowling combination, and Gerald Coetzee and Tabraiz Shamsi may have to wait their turns to get a game. The batting line-up should be unchanged, with no space for Ryan Rickelton yet.
South Africa: Quinton de Kock (wk), Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markam, Tristan Stubbs, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), David Miller, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Ottneil Baartman, Anrich Nortje
Conditions in New York may tempt Netherlands to include an extra seamer and they have Kyle Klein in their squad. But it could come at the expense of a shortened batting line-up and they may not want to risk that.
Netherlands: Michael Levitt, Max O’Dowd, Vikramjit Singh, Sybrand Engelbrecht, Scott Edwards (capt, wk), Bas de Leede, Teja Nidamanuru, Logan van Beek, Tim Pringle, Paul van Meekeren, Vivian Kingma
[Cricinfo]
Nuwan Thushara’s last over brought Sri Lanka screaming back into the match,as he first bowled Rishad Hossain, and then nailed Taskin Ahmed in front of the stumps with a pinpoint swinging yorker. This left Bangladesh eight wickets down, with 12 runs still to get.
However, the experienced Mahmudullah was at the crease for Bangladesh, and despite some further nervy moments, pushed Bangladesh across the line off the last ball of the 19th over.
But this was a match chiefly decided by Bangladesh’s own outstanding bowling. Mustafizur Rahman was the best among them, using shorter lengths and his cutters efficiently, to claim figures of 3 for 17. Rishad Hossain’s three-for through the middle overs also kept Sri Lanka quiet.
Mustafizur was instrumental in Sri Lanka’s downward spiral through the middle overs, which culminated in a crash-and-burn end. Ultimately, their inability to find boundaries, or even rotate strike against good Bangladesh bowling resulted in their downfall. A score of 125 for 9 always seemed poor on a decent pitch, even if their bowlers made a match of it in the end.
Brief scores:
Bangladesh 125 for 8 in 19 overs (Towhid Hridoy 40, Litton Das 36; Dhanajaya de Silva 1-11, Nuwan Thushara 4-18, Wanidu Hasaranga 2-32, Matheesha Pathirana 1-27) beat Sri Lanka124 for 9 in 20 overs (Pathum Nissanka 47, Dhananjaya de Silva 21; Tanzim Hasan Sakib 1-24, Taskin Ahmed 2-25, Mustafizur Rahman 3-17, Rishad Hossain 3-22) by two wickets
[Cricinfo]
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