The pack is reshuffled

Bangladesh arrives in Sri Lanka not too long after fairing poorly against India in both the ODI’s and Test matches. They did show some resistance in the limited over games, following up from their reasonable successes in the World Cup, but the Test matches were a disaster.The Sri Lankan selectors have come-up with a mixed bag in terms of players for the three Tests and three ODI’s. Malinda Warnapura is uncapped in Test Cricket (he is not in the ODI squad), and he is the only player who is on debut. All the other players have had a taste of big time cricket. Warnapura has been round for awhile, getting runs at domestic level and more recently for the ‘A’ team, including the big double century against his Bangladeshi counterparts. He struggled in the ODI when he batted in at Abu Dhabi. Should he get the opportunity, then he must cease it as he is not playing against a strong opposition and also home conditions in his favour.

On the other side of the fence experienced players are being assigned different roles. Marvan Atapattu is in the test line-up and looking at the squad he is bound to open this inning. This series will indicate his future role – perhaps only as a test opener, since he is not in the one day squad. His former partner and shredder of bowling attacks, Sanath Jayasuriya, has been asked to do the opposite, being selected only for the one dayers. His future role too could well depend on this tour taking into account his performance and the performances of the other openers.

Ten players find themselves in both squads, including captain Jayawardena and Vice Captain Sangakkara. With Prasanna Jayawardena in the test squad Sangakkara will be relieved of keeping duties. This would mean that Jayawardena will be expected to perform with the bat as well.

Of these players in both squads, Malinga Bandara could well be in limbo once again and may get few opportunities to play. With Upul Chandana. also in the squad Bandara’s opportunities to be in the final eleven could be limited. He is at the stage in his career where he must be progressing. However, the lack of opportunity to bowl regularly against top class batsmen and bowl a lot of overs, has stunted his progress in the past 12 months. He is a bowler with potential and must be used to ensure progress.
Sujeewa de Silva, earns a comeback into the test squad and Jehan Mubarak into the ODI squad. Five years ago de Silva impressed against the same opposition, but fell by the wayside. Now he will probably have to stay in Chaminda Vaas’shadow, with the hope of getting into the third test match when Vass maybe rested.

Of those who have been around in the past three years and playing regularly – T.M. Dilshan, Fervez Mahroof and Dilhara Fernando has an opportunity to put in some big performances to prove their value. All three have played their part in the team and have a number of solid performances behind them. Consistency is what they have lacked. They will get the first chance being in both squads. They have had some time off playing and must be physically and mentally ready to go. To make these games the launching pad for the next stage of their careers should be the goal.

Pace ace, Lasith Malinga should be used sparingly in these games. There is a lot of cricket from September this year until April next year and Malinga will be so crucial to the attack, as a striker. The main purpose of the exercise is for him to stay in rhythm and not get rusty. Prepare him for the tasks ahead and keep it to that.

The one day squad remains largely the same as at the World Cup, indicating the satisfaction in the manner they performed. Russel Arnold has retired and Muttiah Muralitharan is being given a break. Marvan Atapattu is the only casualty. His not playing a single game in the Caribbean, indicated a preference to stick with younger players. Medium pacer Nuwan Kulasekera remains on board. There are no other paceman knocking hard enough at the door to gain entry so Kulasekera keeps on going. Jehan Mubarak gets yet another opportunity. He seems to get cold feet when up against the best. He can’t afford to miss the bus again, Upul Chandana makes the only noticeable change. He comes back into the side at age 35. Chamara Kapugedara who just missed out on the World Cup also gets back in.

All these movements and apparent changes still means that only Malinda Warnapura and Sujeewa de Silva could be branded as new comers. The former is 28 and the latter is 27 years old. An indication that the system is not producing enough young players whom the selectors are confident of picking. It has been a case of shuffling the pack!