Top Spin By Suni

August 14th 2011
The Sri Lankans at Hambantota as much as they did at Pallekelle seemed like a bunch of drunken sailors aboard a rudderless ship albeit celebrating two insignificant T20 wins yet unable to contain their opponents as they floundered away to their second ignominious ODI defeat in a row making their opponents look glorified when in reality they could in all probabilities have been beaten if the Lankans had put up a better performance without the pathetic hangdog like effort and the heart of the matter seems to be a combination of the choice of team selection, the inability to face real pace, proper leadership and perhaps cricketing savvy which some at administrative level seem to be lacking in, particularly the ones who never wielded a bat or hurled the leather at the highest level do be deserving of their designation.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ It seems apathetic that after those wonderful captaincy runs by past captains like Mahela Jayawardena and Kumar Sangakkara in recent times and Arjuna Ranatunga going back a bit further in time, who led from the front with much accomplishment and dazzle, today the leadership of Tillekeratne Dilshan seems a shambles where he seems neither able to weild his bat equitably to the task, probably a result of the pressures of captaincy nor able to set a field to his bowlers without bleeding runs (an example in reverse set magnificiently by the Aussies ) where as a combination of both lapses his team has neither been able to set a competitive target for the Aussies nor contain them from steamrolling his team which looked so promising in the T 20s but today looked as ragged and disoriented as ever! The term ‘definitely’ which always seems to be a choice word of the otherwise amiable Dilshan at post game interviews seemed to have a hollow ring to it today and applicable only towards the loss.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Perhaps the chairman of selectors and his aides should view objectively the choices they make for the rest of the ODIs as well as the Tests forthcoming and replenish the side with likely performers leaving out stragglers who have not performed and consequently do not deserve a place in the side, not for sentimental reason, the excuse of blooding young players nor hopeful expectations of performance which thus far in the case of some simply have not delivered or else face the further ignominy of a resounding thrashing at the hands of the Aussies on home turf a very forseeable prospect unless the tide is stemmed and the rot arrested!!

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ It needs to be mentioned in very serious perspective that the ommision of players of the calibre of Kandamby, Samaraweera, Maharoof and some others more deserving than certain passengers who have made the current squad seems an unforgivable lapse and even from the present squad, players like Randive, Thisara Perera, Welegedera and Lakmal seem to be performers who hardly deserve rejection for their replacements of choice in this team which lost at Hambantota today and if the Chairman of Selectors and a few others who have been recalled to replace the previous committee pf SLCB whose example was tardy at best focused their attentions on players deserving selection on merit and not patronage or imagined expectations which seem to be more pipe dreams than reality or the regular shuffling of players, batting and bowling orders and the like, there may be better as well as more positive results for Sri Lanka against the Aussies who are a thoroughly professional lot who cannot be contained without proper strategy nor upended without attacking them from the front and the utilization of player resources applied judiciously rather than at random and speculatively!

Hopefully lessons will be learnt or else the price could be costly!