Sri Lanka’s Crazy Unimaginable Performances

Andrew Fidel Fernando, in ESPNcricinfo, where the title reads 

I = The Test series win in South Africa

Kusal Perera, who had only made one previous century against Zimbabwe, produced one of the most spectacular Test innings of all time as Sri Lanka chased down 304 for victory. But as ridiculous as that innings from this player was, the remainder of that series was no less outlandish. Dimuth Karunaratne had been thrown the captaincy just days before the Durban Test, following Sri Lanka’s nightmare tour of Australia, in which a small hospital’s worth of Sri Lanka players were injured. Thanks to those injuries, Sri Lanka’s frontline attack consisted of a spinner on debut, and two fast bowlers who had played fewer than five Tests. Sri Lanka’s most reliable batsman, Angelo Mathews, was also missing thanks to injury.

Capricious Cricket Governance in Lanka: Koheydha Yanney, Malley Pol!

Andrew Fidel Fernando, in ESPNcricinfo, August 2019 where the title runs “Sri Lanka are winning, but it’s in spite of the system”

ri Lanka have won another Test, their third in a row chasing a tough score. Their captain dug in for a tenacious fourth-innings hundred. The victory has yielded 60 Test Championship points – an excellent start to their campaign in that competition. Away from Tests, they have comfortably won their most-recent ODI series, against Bangladesh, and performed better than expected at the World Cup, finishing sixth. With young players suddenly coming through, and a capable captain at the helm, it is tempting to believe Sri Lanka have begun to recover following a several-year lull.

Dimuth Karunaratne stands as Calm as Tall

Andrew Fidel Fernando in ESPNcricinfo, 17 August 2019, where the title runs “Karunaratne, a cool captain for Sri Lanka’s high seas”

The selectors are making strange picks, the board is trying to sack another coach, the sports minister is making serious overreaches, the XI changes from series to series, but from amid this chaos, which to many has seemed like the wreckage of a once-was cricketing power, Dimuth Karunaratne has eked out a small but significant patch of stability.

Hathuru Out? Legal Tangle!

Andrew Fidel Fernando, in ESPNcricinfo, August  2019, with this title “SL look to sever ties with Hathurusingha, Rumesh Ratnayake namedinterim coach”

Sri Lanka cricket has installed Rumesh Ratnayake as interim coach for the Test series against New Zealand, as they attempt to sever ties with head coach Chandika Hathurusingha.

Hathurusingha has been under substantial pressure in 2019, with Sri Lanka’s sports minister in particular suggesting that the team is not producing results consistent with the size of Hathurusingha’s remuneration package. That pressure has been ratcheted up since the end of the World Cup, with minister Harin Fernando repeatedly casting aspersions on Sri Lanka’s win record under Hathurusingha. Essentially, he has stated publicly that Hathurusingha does not deserve a salary that according to Fernando amounts to “$40,000 per month”.

Hilal Suhaib’s Assessment of Sri Lanka’s Selections and World Cup Performance

Hilal Suhaib, in IslandCricket.lk, …., https://www.islandcricket.lk/news/featured/sri-lanka-2023-world-cup/?fbclid=IwAR2tOft4Zg5HmX4SSCo3HuD-Sv3V6h-ptSW6g16PdG9EZ9ymFMduSzdcoWg

Sri Lanka exceeded my expectations at the 2019 World Cup — a winless exit was a strong possibility. Dimuth Karunaratne’s men overcame the challenges set by their own camp to end the tournament with three wins. There is no criticism of this team for not making the semis. Not losing to Afghanistan is a praiseworthy accomplishment today for a nation that once won the ODI world title and were for many years considered strong contenders to enter the final stages of any ICC tourney.

Sri Lanka’s Cricket Dissected

Sidharth Monga, in ESPNcricinfo, 16 June 2019, where the title reads “Dysfunction, hope, more dysfunction; Sri Lanka’s World Cup rolls on”

The wife of Sri Lanka’s once-captain has accused – on Facebook – one of their players of being a political appointment made by the sports minister of the country. That captain – one of the seven ODI captains tried by Sri Lanka since the last World Cup – is not the captain anymore. He has been accused of picking and choosing games, and has been forced to switch between IPL and domestic cricket in Sri Lanka, and is eventually here at the World Cup. Barely.

Captaincy Stakes: How the Burden landed in Dimuth’s Lap

Andrew Fidel Fernando, in ESPNcricinfo, 17 April 2019, with this title “How Sri Lanka’s search for a World Cup captain ended with Karunaratne”

Where most teams are merely working out which of their fringe players will make the trip to the World Cup, Sri Lanka had a bigger question to answer: who will captain the team? Over the past two years, the captaincy has changed hands at a dizzying rate, with Angelo Mathews having had it in two stints, Dinesh Chandimal also helming the ship twice, Lasith Malinga getting the job in late 2018 (after having been stand-in captain once, in 2017), while Thisara Perera and even Chamara Kapugedara have also led the team. It’s been like a game of spin-the-bottle, except instead of embarrassing teenage consequences, Sri Lanka have had embarrassing losses. Since the start of 2017, they have lost 41 and won only 11 ODIs.

Sri Lanka’s World Cup Squad: Punting from Down Under

Michael Roberts

I am venturing bold and proceeding to select fifteen players without the ‘data’ issuing from the trial matches taking place in Sri Lanka. I have taken serious note of Asantha de Mel’s provocative and thoughtful media session and been assisted materially by comments from a pal in Lanka who keeps a close eye on events within the island, but wishes to remain in the background. He will feature in my essay as ‘The Ghost’.

Lessons for Our Cricketers & Cricket Managers

Rohan Wijeyaratna in Island, 15 March 2019,

Of late, Mangala Samaraweera has been in the news. That is not strange given the colourful character  he is. In a parliament that is progressively getting stuffed with those who are boringly similar, it is not surprising those who dare to be different from the herd hardly get any noteworthy mention. Mangala does not fear to be different. And he does not make any bones about it.

The chief reason why so many Sri Lankan batsmen suffered blows on their heads was the absence of proper technique when playing short pitched bowling. On each such occasion they transgressed two cardinal rules applicable to the issue. They failed to get inside the line of flight, and they took their eyes off the ball. In short, they appeared sitting ducks to get hit.

Rohan Wijeyaratna’s Fine-grained Analysis of the Durban Test Match

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rohan Wijeyaratna, in Island, 18 February 2019, where the title reads “Sri Lanka’s finest hour!”

By the end of the third day at Kingsmead in Durban, Sri Lanka were three down for 83 and still requiring 221 to win. All indications were that they were heading towards another customary ending. The game was keenly poised, and If ever there was an occasion for someone to play Horatius at the Bridge, this was it. Early indications were that there weren’t any such gallant men in sight. Batsmen simply came and went. Among those dismissed on day three were Karunaratne, Thirimanne and Kusal Mendis; more or less the main gut of the Sri Lankan batting. At the wicket were Kusal Perera and Oshada Fernando; both threatening to depart anytime. If Sri Lanka were to clamber out of this latest hole, character, restraint, measured aggression and some luck were all needed in equal measure. Despite their well-chronicled self-destructive tendencies, this Test still offered the visitors an opportunity. The pitch was relatively benign and the South African bowlers somehow lacked the sustained menace to cause alarm. All what Sri Lanka needed was greater stomach to make a fist of things. The Lankans however, seemed unconvinced. Instead they set about doing what they were quite expert at. That was to self-destruct. Be it at cricket or any other, Sri Lanka stands unparalleled when it comes to missing out on opportunities which land on their own doorstep. And so it seemed, one more time!