Flat footed Sri Lanka crumble in Port Elizabeth giving South Africa clean sweep.–
-BY TREVINE RODRIGO IN MELBOURNE.
(eLanka Sports Editor)
Sri Lanka batted themselves out of contention to play in the Test Championship final after a customary batting debacle in Port Elizabeth.
After their bowlers gave them an fighting chance to level the two Test series, Sri Lanka’s batters were incapable of scoring 143 with five wickets intact required on the last day, as the turning track saw them crash to a 109- run defeat giving the home team a 2-0 sweep and a solid seat at number two in the rankings.
Keshav Maharaj exposed Sri Lanka’s weakness against top quality spin with a match winning five-wicket haul. So the questions that arise from the tour is that Sri Lanka’s batters are ill equipped to handle genuine pace, swing and spin.
It certainly puts the onus back on the coaches and what expertise they have imparted to a struggling batting line-up.
The sorry state of Sri Lanka’s batters is a worrying highlight which was not rectified after the first Test mauling in Durban.
The inability to learn from a pathetic performance in Durban and try something new is as baffling as the knowledge that the lower order has next to nothing to offer against any bowling attack if one was to observe their strokeplay, or the lack of technique in it.
Compared to the top teams such as Australia and India, Sri Lanka’s inconsistent batting is a sore thumb that prominently sticks out and the cricketing world have grown accustomed to. The two games in South Africa is clear testament to it.
Where to from here is the unknown from a Sri Lankan perspective as the likes of Dimuth Karunaratne and a few others make way into the twilight, and urgent replacements are needed to fill those vital gaps.
Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Matthews and Skipper Dhananjaya de Silva are the next in line who have justified their selection in a limited capacity while former Skipper Dimuth Karunaratne appears to be on the outer. Mediocre contributions do not justify they continue, which highlights the urgent focus on the generation ahead.
While hindsight is a wonderful perspective in the after event, questions may be asked of the selection of the same team drubbed in Durban which had two promising batsmen in Sadeera Samarawickrema and Oshada Fernando warming the benches.
If thinking of the future of Sri Lanka cricket had anything to do with it, a little bit of experimentation would not have been a bad thing hindsight suggests, unless the hope of making the final with the same team was the mindset that backfired.
Experience away from home is the key to confidence and understanding how to handle alien conditions, and the lack of it translates the exact opposite. It certainly does not help the younger members hoping to don the national cap down the track.
Sri Lanka returns home with plenty to ponder before hosting Australia for a two Tests at home. While their chances of playing in the final is all but blown, a series win would certainly bolster the confidence of the group going forward.
Sanath Jayasuriya and his team of coaches have a deeper train of thought to negotiate, and their reaction to this ill fated tour will determine if they are up to it.
