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Sports

Here, they come in pairs
By S.R. Pathiravitha
Various countries in the world develop different and unique idiosyncrasies in different fields of activity. Interestingly in Sri Lanka this aspect has come in the field of cricket, where very base performers of the team who carry the major share of fortunes have come in pairs and also in an unbroken chain for almost the past three decades. Down the line these pairs in cricket have complemented each other and have built their own characters on each others strengths.

Going back to over three decades. In the early seventies there came two budding cricketers from two leading schools in and around Colombo. The more senior of the two, Louis Rohan Duleep Mendis hailed from St. Sebastian’s College, Moratuwa ( and later S. Thomas’, Mt. Lavinia) while the other Roy Luke Dias represented St. Peter’s College Colombo.

Both batsmen took the Colombo Schools Cricket scene which was very popular in that era by storm and every one knew that it was only a matter of time before they would graduate into the big league. However as the Sri Lankan Cricket structure was not laid on a firm footing at that time it was almost another good decade later that these two cricketers entered the “Test” arena – apparently quite late in their careers. However once in the saddle of the ‘big-time’ game the two names Roy and Duleep became synonymous in local cricket and went on with almost everything that Sri Lankan cricket meant.

By the time Sri Lanka played their inaugural Test match against England at the P. Saravanamuttu Stadium, Sri Lanka already had a well composed senior side that had already made an impact. Opening batsman Bandula Warnapura led the inaugural Test for Sri Lanka but, wheels-within-wheels in Lankan cricket saw Duleep taking the reins only in their third Test match and held on for almost the next six years. In these fledgling years Sri Lanka hardly got a “Test’ match leave alone a full series. So much so from 1982 to 1988 Mendis was featured in only 24 Tests while Dias in only 20. In spite of this both batsmen made a name for themselves in the arena.

The Mendis twin centuries against India and the two “Lords” knocks along with the Dias batting mastery became legendary and their test averages of 31.64 and 36.71 does not give the correct reflection of their skills. The most famous knock of these two batsmen wound together was the match saving stand against India to seal Sri Lanka’s first ever series win where both batsmen ended up with centuries. Of course, during this period, there were cricketers of the calibre of Sidath Wettimuny, Ranjan Madugalle, Asantha de Mel and D.S. de Silva etc…, but certainly the very core of the team composition was manned by Mendis and Dias.

While Mendis and Dias were manning the show along with the other seniors there were another two youngsters who were making their presence felt in the team in Arjuna Ranatunge and Aravinda de Silva. Though they had made their mark individually the first time they proved that they together would prove to be a lethal combination was when they guided Sri Lanka to their first major trophy win over Pakistan in the 1985/86 Asia Cup final at the SSC grounds. From a tentative 64 for 3 in reply to Pakistan’s total of 191 the two young Lankan batsmen put on a fighting 97 runs for the 5th wicket.

When they parted with the score on 161 when Ranatunge got out, the Lankan win was almost sealed. Both Ranatunge and de Silva scored 57 and 52 respectively.

Both Ranatunge and de Silva then the ascended helm of activity in Sri Lanka and from that point onwards their exploits became a story of transformation and achievement till it culminated in Sri Lanka winning the World Cup exactly ten years after they had won the Asia Cup. (Sri Lanka won their first Asia Cup on 2nd March 1986 while they won the World Cup on March 17 1996).

When the Ranatunge-de Silva combination had come of age and was on the wane the Jayasuriya-Atapattu combination took centre stage of Lankan cricket. One of the most successful opening combinations in recent world cricket, both Jayasuriya and Atapattu have been the core of Sri Lankan cricketing fortunes for more than half a decade. However with age and injury catching up with this duo it does seem that they will move further than the next World Cup in the West Indies. Nevertheless “luck” also has been on Sri Lanka’s side. Now it seems that the new emerging combination of Sangakkara and Jayawardena have understood what their responsibilities with the rest of the composition are and are gearing towards it like their predecessors did during the past three decades.

It all augurs well for Sri Lankan cricket. Their next pit stop is in England and they are down to take them on in early spring when the ball will be very conducive for swing bowling. If Atapattu could cast aside his injury problems and join the tour squad it will be a big boon for the Lankan contingent. At the same time Jayasuriya who also has put himself under tremendous pressure should come to terms with reality and take the game as it comes and as everybody knows he still is good enough for big scores if his own pressure does not impede him.

With these drawbacks at hand both Sangakkara and Jayawardena should now understand the responsibility that is gradually coming upon them and complement each other’s strengths and carry Lankan cricket forward to the next generation.

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