The bird that flew away

A tour that began on a successful note ended disappointingly as rain and three losses hampered the Sri Lankan tour of the West Indies. After the first test win Mahela Jayawardena’s team looked capable of dominating the balance of the tour, but it was not to be.
The turnaround began when the Sri Lankans were dismissed for 276 runs in the first innings of the second test. The West Indies began to believe in themselves. They had a small window of opportunity and they got a foot in and then another and came the whole body. They came into the ODI’s expecting to battle tooth and nail.

They had four players who impressed through the tour. The experienced batting duo Shivnaraine Chanderpaul and Ramnaresh Sarvan and their up-and-coming young players, allrounder Dwayne Bravo and paceman Jerome Taylor. Most of their performances came when the team needed a contribution from them. Chanderpaul played three decisive innings, in the second test and in the first and second ODI’s. Those innings took the games away from Sri Lanka.

Part of the exercise of this tour was to experiment and given an opportunity, to a number of players on the fringe of gaining national recognition and permanent places in the team. The first ODI saw one such player making the most of the opportunity. The team score was 49 for 5 wickets when twenty one year old Chamara Kapugedara went out to join Chamara Silva.

He was tested with the short delivery, as he got entangled early, not picking up the pace and bounce of the pitch. That did not happen for too long. He started to get his feet into position, get balanced to play and the strokes got crisp. With only one half century in 28 previous occasions, his mates may have been on the edge of their seats.

Both he and his partner Chamara Silva attacked the deliveries that were punishable and the partnership prospered. With Darren Sammy the medium pacer and Chris Gayle the part time off spinner operating they were not unduly troubled and both went on to reach half centuries. Kapugedara went lbw for 95 playing an innings of character – an innings that helped Sri Lanka to reach a respectable 235 runs.

In the end the home team snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. Ten runs off two deliveries is almost an impossibility. It’s a one percent chance and on this day the West Indies triumphed. There definitely was an element of luck involved as much as cricketing ability.

The rain and the stoppages again got in the way of Sri Lanka’s progress in the second game. They were also handicapped with Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardena falling well below their best. That is part of reality that they will experience periods of performing below par. They are only human. What is necessary is for others to bat and bowl to their best ability, to cover up for Jayawardena and Sangakkara, hitherto a rare lapse on their part.

After rain halted Sri Lanka’s innings in the thirty first over, the target for the West Indies on the Duckworth/Lewis system was a piece of cake! Although Nuwan Kulasekera bowled bravely and accounted for three West Indian batsmen, Chanderpaul and on this occasion Samuels, took their team to a comfortable win and with it clinched the series.

The teams and all else involved were greeted with buckets of rain that fell on the island of St. Lucia two days before the game. The sun came out the next day and the day nighter started on time the following day. Batting first again runs were scored by Mahela Udawatte, Chamara Kapugedara and T.M. Dilshan -- each one providing his own style of play. Chasing 258 runs the Windies were 81 for 2 wickets when the rains came down to end the series. Disappointing, as the games were poised for a close finish. A tour that started on the front foot for Sri Lanka ended on the back foot.