Now come the tough times

The Sri Lankan team fell with a thud at the Champions Trophy, unable to reach the last four. They have had time to dust off the memories and reflect on the experience. There is no doubt that the coach, the captain and the team would have analyzed the events that occurred and what went wrong.

A fact that was reveled during this tournament was the strength, the standing of each team, currently, as a one day unit. Australia again proved their all round superiority. The bench strength they possess was also evident. They are a number of notches ahead of the rest.

Half-a-dozen of the other teams seem pretty much of equal strength. Performance on the day is the key factor. There is not a lot to choose amongst India, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Pakistan, New Zealand, and from lately the West Indies too. England have slipped back and at present lag behind the rest and look unlikely to catch-up before the World Cup comes around in March.
What of Sri Lanka? They tour New Zealand for just over six weeks and then have a short tour of India in February. That will be their lot in terms of preparation, prior to the big event. The tours will be played in contrasting conditions. New Zealand, at this time of year will provide seaming pitch conditions and India in February will be just the opposite.

As a matter of fact, Sri Lanka filled in to a gap left by the Indians pulling out of touring New Zealand. That happened about a year ago. India toured New Zealand at their last outing before the 2002 World Cup held in South Africa. They had a disastrous tour and most of the batsmen fared miserably. Perhaps it was that experience that prompted them to avoid this tour and prepare in warmer conditions, more similar to the Carribean.

When the first of the two test matches commence it will be early summer. The selectors have taken the conditions into consideration and left out leg spinner Malinga Bandara. The one dayers commence at the end of December and that is a consolation. The pitches will be dryer and hopefully the batsmen will have a more comfortable life then.

What will be of utmost importance for the batsmen is to adjust their approach by a high percentage from the test to the one dayers. As it does happen normally there is an adjustment required. Now, in the long game the defense will have to be tighter, flashy strokes will have to be minimized. The requirement for the batsmen will be to occupy the crease and accumulate runs.

The last outing before the World Cup will be to India where the neighbours will lock horns over four one dayers. February is the last lap in the Indian season. The pitches are still good to bat on, but possibly would have got somewhat slower and maybe some spin as a game progresses.

On the last outing to India, the Sri Lankans just would not come to grips with the easy paced batting pitches. The bowlers were taken apart by the Indian batsmen. Often in Indian conditions the opening spell becomes vital. The most must be made of the new ball, where picking up two or three wickets is essential. The other requirement is for two spinners and a part time bowler to be able to send down twenty five very economical overs and again, in the process pick up two or three wickets. All easier said than done!

It is a time when the team must fire up and meet the challenge. Should the confidence be slightly dented, it is time to rise-up. The challenges of the conditions of the two tours and the strength of the opposition must be met head on, positively. Times will be tough – it is time for the tough to get going.