A great win, but was it enough?

Kumar Sangakkara showed the world what a cool operator he was inspiring Sri Lanka to a great and an unforgettable victory in the first test at Galle. Watching him on the 4th morning talking to the team, I couldn’t imagine what he had left to tell them with just 97 runs to defend. However it is now history and all the moves made by the captain have been a success, this includes the flying in of Rangana Herath who walked away with the Man of the Match award! “It was a great performance from the team” was Sangakkara’s reaction to his teams win in Galle.

Having said all that and after his brilliant first outing as Captain can skipper Sangakkara truly be satisfied with this performance? I am sure that he will be the first to admit that the Lankan’s were below par. The biggest complaint will be against the batting!

“It was the first time our strong batting line up failed. But I don’t think we should allow it to happen again” “Our fast bowlers and spinners did a great job but we can’t expect them to bail us out always” Was Skipper Sangakkara’s reaction to the performance.

It was a very bad match for the top batsmen in the Sri Lankan line up. To begin with Warnapura a very talented and a capable opener was undone by two good deliveries. However both weren’t unplayable. In the 1st innings he was done by an unnecessary cut and in the 2nd innings by a delivery that left him. However I am convinced that he has enough talent and commitment and the experience to overcome this rare failure of his, though I strongly feel that he needs to cut out his desire for quick runs. We all know that cricket has changed and the approach has changed but the very principles in building an innings however hasn’t changed at all and this was evident the way Tharanga Paranavithana batted. His technique as an opener was excellent and he was always able to withstand the swinging ball well as he was quite aware where his off stump was and his leaving of deliveries out side his off stump was excellent.

However as a wicket keeper Dilshan was just unbelievable!

As for Skipper Sangakkara and Jayawardane, it was just one bad game and they should take it in their stride. They are too good to continue to fail. Having accumulated runs against the best of the bowling and with almost 15,000 test runs between them, surely they should be getting those runs they are familiar, during the rest of the series. And personally for Sangakkara the captaincy doesn’t appear to a burden either” you don’t have to captain the side when you are batting. You captain the side only when you are fielding” I am sure one couldn’t have agreed more with the skipper on that count.

As for Thilan Samaraweera and Dilshan they were unlucky not to go on and get the big score, after having looked in sublime touch. Samaraweera in particular displayed some great orthodoxy coupled with flair and was always a treat to watch though he had two very short innings by his very high standards. On the other hand Dilshan seem to just carry on from the T 20 World Cup and played two lovely little innings. But as batsmen both Samaraweera and Dilshan will need to kick on with big scores from here as 20’s or 30’from top order batsmen can never win test matches. However as a wicket keeper Dilshan was just unbelievable! It was a great loss to have had the worlds best out fielder keep wickets! But Dilshan is such a fine all round player that he can keep as easily as he fields! The run outs of Mohommad Yousuf and Misbah were crucial in the final out come of the match. “Dilshan showed all of us what a great all round fielder he is” was Skipper Sangakkara’s view commenting on his stumper’s performance.

Is Sri Lanka on the way to discover the genuine all rounder they have been yearning for? I am sure Angelo Mathews did tickle the mind of many onlookers with his batting and more than useful medium fast bowling accounting for a wicket with his sixth ball in test cricket! I am convinced that if young Mathews develop his bowling, he is going to have a very long stay with the National team and will be able to provide the much needed balance the side needs for sure.

As for the bowling it was this aspect that created all the pressure in the Pakistan camp. Whilst Kulasekera was excellent in the first Herath and Thushara were more than handy in the second. The manner they bowled with confidence to a very strong Pakistan batting line up in the 2nd innings was exceptional. The Sri Lankan team realized that they were walking a very thin line in the form of both saving runs and also attacking just enough to get wickets, which they did with great efficiency. The victory becomes all the more creditable due to the fact that Sri Lanka’s two most experienced bowlers Muralitharan Injured and Vaas not considered were not playing any part in it. Having said that the bowlers cannot be performing miracles all the time as the unpredictable nature of Pakistan could never be fathomed. “Pakistan could always come back at us as they are a good side” was Sangakkara’s view. Hence it is everybody’s hope that the top order will fire and give the bowlers enough runs to challenge the Pakistan Batsmen in the 2nd test.

Roshan Abeysinghe is a leading cricket promoter and an international cricket commentator