Sri Lanka men roar back into contention after T20 debacle.
Jeffrey Vandersay 6 for 33, bamboozles strong Indian batting to steer Sri Lanka to 1-0 lead.
Jeffrey Vandersay 6 for 33, bamboozles strong Indian batting to steer Sri Lanka to 1-0 lead.
BY TREVINE RODRIGO IN MELBOURNE.
(eLanka Sports Editor).
(eLanka Sports Editor).
Sri Lanka’s men recovered from a T20 thrashing to show some pride as they roared back to take a 1-0 lead in the best of three series against India at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.
Showing grunt in the first game tie, Sri Lanka rode on the back of trump card Jeffrey Vandersay whose last minute inclusion for Hasaranga proved to be a Godsend.
As I said in my preview, the only way Sri Lanka could unsettle India’s best laid plans was to produce an X factor that they had no counter to. Vandersay provided that, much like Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis did years ago.
34- year- old Vandersay, in the twilight of his career, troubled the Indians on a turning track at the R. Premadasa Stadium running through all the big names to grab a career best 6 for 33 in a spectacular 10 over spell that will be long remembered.
After his mesmerising spell that spelt India’s capitulation to a 32- run defeat, Vandersay genuflected in front of the stadium in a stirring respect for God, who he acknowledged was his driving inspiration, and behind a fantastic comeback after years of playing second fiddle to the likes of Hasaranga. He was applauded by his team mates and a section of the crowd at the stadium.
Interviewed after his heroic performance, Vandersay once again thanked God for his success and said he just stuck to keeping it simple and finding the right length to confuse the Indian batters. He thanked his family and team mates for their faith and belief in his ability and underlined the mental challenge posed in not to giving up when things looked hopeless.
Charith Asalanka appears to have recovered somewhat from his fiery baptism as Skipper producing fine allround performances mainly with the ball to have a telling effect on the results.
What was also pleasing was that Sri Lanka were able to break the stranglehold India has had over them for a considerable period by stemming the long term run of losses. Ten in fact on the trot.
The 3-0 thrashing in the T20 series that preceded appears to have stung the one- day squad into action.
A better selection balance had much to do with the change in fortunes as a more effective line-up unsettled the strong Indian team that included former skippers Rohit Sharma and Virat Kholi adding to it K.L Rahul.
Promising young gun Dinuth Wellalage was an undeniable standout in an allround capacity smacking an unbeaten 67 off 65 balls, when Sri Lanka batted, and then went on to claim 2 for 39 to be named Player-of-the-match in game one. He was the backbone of Sri Lanka’s previous batting collapses again in the second game making him a fixture for Sri Lanka’s cricketing future. Wellalage showed his allround talent in game two as well smacking 39 off 35 balls to swell the total.
Sri Lankan fans found new reasons to be exhilarated after not being too excited with the first game tie, knowing the results of the past have been dashed when their expectations lifted.
India would have been jolted by the spirited Sri Lankan response which is obviously spurred by the women’s team that lifted the Asia Cup for the first time which was until then, predominantly an Indian possession.
Sri Lanka’s women have definitely given the men a different perspective about the value of donning the national cap and doing it with pride rather than self interest.
Blooding fresh talent has also put India’s plans in a quandary having to strategise against the unknown.
The second game saw Sri Lanka bat first and were jolted when in form opener Pathum Nissanka departed for a first ball duck. However, Avishka Fernando, 40 off 62 balls, and Kusal Mendis, 30 off 42 balls, stepped in to stop the rot pulling Sri Lanka out of further disaster.
Sri Lanka’s batters found welcome form to register 240 for 9 in their 50 overs and the familiar middle and lower order collapses appear to have been addressed thanks to useful contributions from Dinuth Wellalage 39 off 35 balls and Kamindu Mendis 40 off 44 balls.
Washington Sundar 3 for 30 and Kuldeep Yadav 2 for 33 bowled miserly spells the keep Sri Lanka’s total manageable.
India in reply appear to have switched roles with Sri Lanka squandering a fantastic start from Rohit Sharma, 64 off 44 balls, and Shubman Gill 35 off 44 balls as they slumped from 116 for one to 203 all out losing 9 wickets for 92 runs. Only Axar Patel 44 off 44 made defeat seem competitive as the rest crumbled to the mesmerising spin of Vandersay 6 for 33 from 10 overs, and skipper Charith Asalanka 3 for 20 in 6.2 overs.
Keeping stars away from the big money in the IPL is understandably mission impossible due to its impact on their futures after cricket.
India has cleverly utilised this method to unravel the best talent in the world using the abundance of money splashed around to net in the cream of talent available.
If Sri Lanka are able to pull off the unprobable, and win the series, it will signal the change of direction under Sanath Jayasuriya who was pushed into the job on an interim basis after Chris Silverwood returned home to England after a disappointing T20 World Cup campaign.
Jayasuriya has the heavy burden of responsibility to ensure that they can lift from the depths they have sunk to. His previous efforts as Chief selector didn’t stack up well but may serve as a learning curve.
Sri Lanka’s form ahead will indicate the path they are tracking.
