Questions galore as Sri Lanka replicate old mistakes
Sri Lanka bounced back to draw the first Test against West Indies at Antigua after losing both ODI and T20 series - File pic
After a dreadful Test series against England on home soil, the national team had only a little time to ponder as they embarked on a tour to the Caribbean to play all three formats. It was an ideal opportunity for both teams to begin their preparations for two T20 World Cups in the next two years.
Leading in to the tour, Sri Lanka had to overcome quite a few debacles including the absence of the newly appointed T20 captain Dasun Shanaka who was forced to miss the T20 series due to a delay in obtaining his visa to the Caribbean.
The team management decided to appoint the former captain Angelo Mathews as the stand-in captain for the T20 series. Sri Lanka didn’t have the services of Kusal Janith Perera, Dhananjaya de Silva, Avishka Fernando, Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Isuru Udana who were left out due to fitness and injury concerns while Kusal Mendis was omitted due to the lack of form.
Meanwhile spin-bowling all-rounder Akila Dananjaya was included in the limited-over squad for the first time after the International Cricket Council (ICC) lifted a ban on him recently, on suspect bowling action. This series also saw the return of Dinesh Chandimal who was on the sideline for two years.
Throughout the T20 series Sri Lanka’s batting was a major concern as none of the senior batsmen were able to take responsibility and score consistently.
The performances of the youngsters Pathum Nissanka and Ashen Bandara showed glimpses of hope. Statistically they might not have a great average. But both of them played according to their instincts. It is fair to say that the Lankan lions had their chances throughout the series but couldn’t capitalise.
For an instance in the second T20 Sri Lanka had a bright start to the innings as they added 95 runs for the first wicket but they managed to score only sixty five runs in the last ten overs. The middle order lacked resistance during the course of the series.
Skipper Mathews didn’t manage to get anything substantial in all three matches as he scored only 29 runs at an average of 9.66.
In the meantime Dinesh Chandimal who made his comeback in the shorter format was not able to make a significant contribution until the third T20.
There, he scored a half century at a strike rate of 117.39. Despite his gritty innings in the final T20, he needs to improve the strike rate and also needs to be consistent if he wants to be in the squad for this year’s T20 World Cup in India.
One of the major positives for the tourists were their bowling attack led by the 23-year-old Wanindu Hasaranga who claimed eight wickets at a bowling average of 5.25. Not only he provided wickets at crucial times but also kept the West Indian batsmen on their toes.
If he continues to perform as he does at present it will boost the confidence of the team. Dushmantha Chameera, Akila Dananjaya and Lakshan Sandakan provided able support at all times but they were always under pressure as they had to defend modest scores on all three matches in the series.
The 2-1 series loss is a fair reflection of Sri Lanka’s performance against a formidable West Indian team led by Kieron Pollard. It shows that there is a lot of soul searching to do if Sri Lanka wants to achieve something significant during the T20 world cup in October.
When it comes to the 50 over format, Sri Lanka had the upper hand as they had beaten the West-Indians on home soil last year. This series was Sri Lanka’s first series under the newly introduced ICC World Cup Super League.
Danushka Gunathilaka and captain Dimuth Karunaratne ensured that the tourists had a solid opening partnership on most occasions.
But unfortunately familiar errors ensured that the tourists were not able to resist against spinners as their weaknesses are exposed as they lost 11 out of 24 wickets to spin and the disappointing fact is six of those wickets were taken by Jason Mohammad who is considered to be a part time off-spinner.
On a positive note it was heartening to see the resurgence of Danushka Gunathilake who has been the top scorer for the Lankan lions with 187 runs at an average of 62.33. Wanindu Hasaranga continued to prove his worth as an all-rounder as he aggregated 180 runs at an average of 65.00. He helped Sri Lanka to propel the score over 250 in two consecutive matches.
Thisara perera is a veteran of 166 One Day Internationals and he always keeps the public on the edge of their seats but it is fair to say that this tour has not gone according to plan as he scored just 22 runs at an average of 11. He hardly bowled accurately. As a senior player in the team he should take responsibility to perform at the hour of need.
Sri Lanka’s inability to bowl accurately in to a proper line and length were exposed and the West Indian top order batsmen Evin Lewis and Shai Hope put Sri Lanka to the sword and ensured that Dimuth Karunaratne encountered his first series whitewash as captain.
Sri Lanka head coach Mickey Arthur continued to show his frustration from the dressing room after his team endured another series defeat.
Sri Lanka have been frequently hampered by injuries and fitness concerns and that has been one of the reasons for inconsistency in the performances.
The defeat against West indies will be a bitter pill to swallow as tougher series are to follow. This series is considered as a missed opportunity to get points under their belt as the pressure mounts for a place at the World Cup in two years time.