|
Don't Be Pessimistic Mr Kannangara!
A Response To The Unfair Criticism Of Sri Lankan Skipper Mahela Jayawardena.
© Top Spin By Sunny
For LankaWeb
Feb.22 2007
Don't Be Pessimistic Mr Kannangara! ?
Mr Dilrook Kannangara in his recent evaluation of Sri Lankan Skipper
Mahela Jayawardena which comes pretty close to being a cricketing character
assassination says : "If the Losing Streak Continues Through April
It Will Be A Failed Team Effort and the ten man cricket team has suffered
it again" and such doomsday predictions about Sri Lankan cricket
is being made at a very inauspicious time when the boys need every encouragement
which includes captain Mahela Jayawardena. It must be thought positively
that our team can indeed win the World Cup if they apply themselves
to the task equitably as they are a fully fledged set of world class
batsmen, bowlers and fielders from many angles of cricketing appraisal
and perhaps beyond the realm of comprehension of the writer!.
This is not the time to bicker about a "ten man team" in
an attempt to denigrate Mahela who one must remember is a world class
batsman who shares the record for the highest score for any wicket with
Kumar Sangakkara.I t must be emphasized here that the reason why Sri
Lanka lost the ODI Series against India was due to a very normal aspect
of the game of cricket and its glorious uncertainties where the absences
of Muttiah Muralidharan and Chaminda Vaas were undoubtedly conspicuous
but the decider was lost mainly because the Lankan strike bowlers failed
miserably to keep a line and length on a very flat wicket which was
lively on first lease to prevent the Sri Lankan's from piling up a formidable
total and no big deal to make such a lament about! The Lankans were
on a winning streak according to many analysts in the first game before
the heavens opened up and the series loss might have been somewhat different
had that game been played to a finish or even on the terms of messers.
Duckworth -Lewis!!
In the series loss to India in the final it has to be admitted that
the Sri Lankan batting at times was tentative and circumspect with Sanath
Jayasuriya chasing everything outside the off stump and Upul Tharanga
not doing a bad job of copy cat in being unable to contain his normal
steely self towards following Jayasuriya back to the pavilion. Kumar
Sangakkara did not deliver with the bat when most needed and neither
did Marvan Atapattu beyond a token effort where Chamara Siva alone was
truly outstanding. So it seems totally unfair to breathe fire down Mahela's
neck alone as it was a collective loss which in all probabilities could
have been prevented but Ah! the term uncertainty and other mitigating
factors do come into effect here which also might include a few deplorable
umpiring decisions where the direction of the game could easlily have
been changed, the raucuous Indian crowds whose deafening roars often
interfere with the hearing capacity of umpires etc also a factor and
in a sense pinning the blame on the captaincy too trivial an argument
to be effective enough towards crucifying a losing team and its captain!
Sri Lanka performed extremely well in England in daunting English conditions
and the New Zealand Series was also close enough albeit marred by rain
towards a shared series where the team does deserve some praise together
with Mahela Jayawardena and patted on their backs in saying well done
! there will be better days ahead! Not deserving of captain carving
in the manner of a Thanksgiving turkey by an irate critic with words
that outdo the best of carving knives if the analogy might be used!
The present 11 man team( beg pardon!) not 10, have not failed realistically,
they did lose matches but then so did all other teams and nothing is
that obvious in losing some of the games they did which were closely
contested and by no means one sided. Time to tone down the Mahela bashing
and focus on the realities which face any losing captain and gear up
for the World Cup and learn from the mistakes.There is no purpose in
harping about the merits of in form batsmen making the most contribution
in tournaments which is obvious so what is needed here is for the batsmen
upon whom much is relied to perform at their very best and someting
perhaps which lies in the hands of the coaches and the determination
of the players themselves and no excuses as some of the finest performances
have been produced by great players in the worst of playing conditions
which is what emphasizes the greatness in them.
If poor seasons in batting tend to continue during tournaments affecting
players this is a fact of life true of some of the greatest players
as well as skippers in the world and history has proved it. Bradman,
Hutton, Sobers, Lara, Tendulkar,Gavaskar, Aravinda de Silva, Sanath
Jayasuriya to name some have all had their lean spells where it is foolhardy
to predict that Mahela a rated world class batsman will not recover
from his so called "extraordinarily consistent poor cricket"
according to Mr Kannangara in time for the World Cup. This is utter
balderdash and speculation so lets give our Skipper the opportunity
to redeem himself where the chances are he truly will live upto his
reputation as well as expectations and hopefully he will read this as
an inspiration to silence his armchair critics in spurring him on towards
high achievement at the World Cup and leading his team to victory!
Speaking of lean runs in tournaments considering the thrilling ODI
series defeat of the Australian , World Champions by England and the
humiliating whitewash of the Aussies by New Zealand would the writer
also take the liberty to criticise the Australian captains Ponting and
Hussey respectively and lose faith in their performance capabilities
in the World Cup while also playing harbinger of doom for the Aussies
too?
Even at the present time despite the modest set backs in the recent
past the Lankas are a favoured team towards making the cut to the semis
and hopefully the final. Sri Lanka have a well knit side which will
certainly be strengthened further by the return of Muttiah Muralidharan
and Chaminda Vaas, the experience of Tillekeratne Dilshan, Marvan Atapattu
and the presence of some fine young cricketers in Maharoof, Bandara,Chamara
Silva and the rest of the squad which will truly be spearheaded by captain
Mahela Jayawardena and vice captain Kumar Sangakkara and to get cold
feet over a few meagre losses enough to be as bold enough to say"
It is time a decision is made about Mahela as his unproductive presence
obstructs the placement of another batsman in the team. It is ridiculous
that he is allowed to remain in the team after so many failures. "
is an apathetic shame by a Sri Lanka whose exhortations should be in
the direction of encouraging them as an all inclusive team which incorporates
Mahela Jayawardena who should by all rights take Sri Lanka to great
heights!
Perhaps this writer should console himself with the law of averages
in shedding his shackles of pessimism if all else fails to cheer him
up regarding the Mahela Jayawardena psyche where great things have been
predicted for him and his team in the forthcoming World Cup and the
title "one of the finest young Sri Lankan Captains in recent times"
based on his overall track record, team spirit,temperament and personality.
It seems unfair to Mahela Jayawardena that he has to put up with this
rather puerile evaluation of his acclaimed status as a fine young cricketer
by someone who does not seem to be aware of the saying "It Is Not
Cricket" to go about throwing beamers at someone who in all probabilities
is capable of hitting him over the ropes!! Maybe it will be an incentive
for the World to truly see his mettle as a cricketer with a point or
two to prove and may he have all the blessings towards it!
|
