Like Phoenix - rising from the ashes

In the Western Australian city of Perth Ricky Ponting and team defeated their arch rivals England and regained the Ashes that they lost in 2004. It was their third consecutive win and the Englishmen simply could not rise from the Ashes.

In the neighboring country, in Wellington, the Sri Lankan showed the art of rising from the Ashes. They were comprehensively beaten in the opening game in Christchurch and not much hope was pinned on the touring team to turn tables. The weather not still warm, the pitches not still dry after the winter, New Zealand were still favorites to win another game. In the end it was they who were surprised as the Sri LAnkans turned tables.

Four players figured prominently in the victory. Two of them batsmen and two of them bowlers. Kumar Sangakkara continued from where he left off in the second innings of the earlier test. Then there was Chamara Silva with the bat and two bowlers Lasith Malinga and Muttiah Muralitharan starred with the ball.A team that is down in confidence after defeat requires a player or players to raise their game and performances. Sangakkara provided that tonic. He is a player never short of confidence. Like all great players the last innings is dead and gone, immaterial whether it was a good one or not.

The approach is measured and the focus very sharp. The intent to score runs primary. It was Sangakkara’s innings that set the pace. Every run scored was valuable. Another inadequate score in the first innings would have meant disaster for Sri Lanka.

A batsman in form must bat and bat and bat. He must not throw it away. Periods of good form continues for some time. The good players enjoy that type of form consistently. Ricky Ponting has scored ten centuries in the last fourteen test matches that he has played in. Sangakkara innings was excellent in the face of the situation.

Around the fortress that Sangakkara built, Chamara Silva provided the required contribution. Silva must have been a very, very nervous man going into this match. The manner in which he collected the first ten runs indicated that he was shaking all over! He got through that period and with the guidance and protection of his senior partner Sangakkara he grew in confidence.

Chamara Silva has since made his mark. A half century after two noughts was good enough. That gave him the confidence the mental strength to feel that he is good enough to smack these New Zealand bowlers. It worked and Chamara Silva went on to compile a first test century and a big one at that. It has left the doors open for him to gain entry into the ODI team.

He was fancied to be a one day batsman from the manner in which he compiled runs. They were got quickly in every attacking fashion. In fact when he appeared on the scene some six years ago he looked the part for a position in the one day side. Then, over enthusiasm to attack without purpose brought about his downfall. A climb back to the top league via ‘A’ team has given Silva a new lease of life. This century will give him another lease of life.

The player who set the wheels of a victory in motion was Lasith Malinga. Sri Lanka’s 268 runs wasn’t a big total for a test match. They needed to be ahead on the first innings and that required good bowling supported by the fielders.

Malinga has troubled the New Zealand in both test matches. He is now bowling over 140 kmh regularly. At times he is touching the 150 kmh mark too. That is good pace. Combine it with his different action where the arm at delivery is much lower that other bowlers – it becomes difficult to pick-up the flight path of the ball. The five wickets he got in the first innings destroyed the Black Caps and put them out of the game.

Muttiah Muralitharan is thoroughly enjoying test match bowling. He followed on with the first test success. The opposition was very cautious playing him and was unable to read the many varieties of deliveries that kept coming at them. He was also able to extract spin off both pitches. It’s nothing uncommon for Muralitharan to obtain spin, but here, the ball was turning quite sharply. It is then that he could produce a wicket taking delivery regularly.

The team must now look ahead to the shorter version of the game. They will only play one day cricket till the end of the World Cup in April next year. Now they have risen from the ashes there should be no looking back.