There is no special interest or excitement centered around the game right now. It is business as usual. The domestic tournament, in a different format this season goes on. A three day club game followed by the one dayer between the same two clubs has worked well so far. Only the rain has been a spoiler. That has to be expected this time of the year with the North/East monsoon being active.

The national team has left for Bangladesh, almost unnoticed. After the Indians left in August, it’s been a dull period. The twenty-twenty tournament in Canada and the Zimbabwean tour of ODI’s only hasn’t got the blood pressure pumping. It’s almost the same with the present tour. Bangladesh however is expected to perform better in home conditions.

For Sri Lanka, as 2008 ends and 2009 begins their focus must now be on the next World Cup. In between there will be the T20 World Cup and two Champions Trophy tournaments. The two Champions Trophy tournaments will in particular be an assessment for all tams on their World Cup preparations.
At this stage what has to be done is to look at all player options and the on field combinations. No team will officially make announcements on these options and combinations. The selections make it possible to read between the lines.

The Sri Lankan players, one and all must dust off the cobwebs and any form of lethargy that could have crept in, as a result of the lack of tough international match competition. Good, established players need that type of competition to really get fired up.

Mahela Jayawardena is going through such a trot. On the last weekend, he played an innings that showed the return of touch and form, against neighboring club rivals, N.C.C. He has two tests and four ODI’s in Bangladesh to apply himself and make big scores and relax the foundation for the future assignments. It’s reaching peak season in Bangladesh, so the pitches should be in good nick, for batsmen to make runs.

Mahela is taking this tour very seriously

It will be an important tour for the fringe players. They need to impress with consistent performances. The encouraging factor is that there are young players and players in the mid steam of their careers who are on the threshold. An area that Sri Lanka lacked at the last World Cup was a player or two who could take on an attack in the middle and late overs. Should the top order be able to score runs quickly early and maintain the momentum then well and good. Most often there is the necessity to accelerate as an innings progresses.

Of the allrounders Farveez Maharoof remains from the last World Cup. Unfortunately his progress has been hampered due to injury. He will develop in his bowling as he continues to gather experience. It is in the batting department that much improvement is required. He must develop another twenty five to thirty percent, being able to bat through the last twenty overs, score runs and score them quickly. Thilina Thushara played a fine hand in the games against India. He should aim to reach a peak in two years time. Dhammika Prasad is another who has shown much improvement. Add Angelo Mathews to that list and the coach has ability and promise to work with. On the outside is Kaushalya Weeraratne and Dilhara Lokuhettige, both capable as all round performers.

The batting department also requires looking into. An opening partnership has to be established soon. It is good to see Upul Tharanga back in the side and making some runs. Mahela Udawatte has missed out. He must have learnt one lesson from his experiences – to value his wicket and not to give it away unnecessarily. Other tried players Chamara Kapugedara, Jehan Mubarak, together with Thilina Kandamby, stay in the running. Kapugedara is the most talented and capable of the three. He needs to come up with consistent performances. Mubarak has come up with some impressive performances lately, but is not yet established. Kandamby is the least tried.

It will be an interesting tour for the reasons of the senior players retaining their place, whilst those not established have the opportunity to establish themselves and stake claims for the future tours.
= Ranil Abeynaike is a former Sri Lanka cricketer and ex-curator of SSC