The real epilogue has begun. The Lankan cricket is thus inactive till fifth December pending their flight to the Proteas Land where they will begin their tour with a three-day warm-up at Sahara Willowmoore Park, Benoni. The real baptism with fire will begin at the SuperSport Park, Centurion on December 15, when the two sides meet for the first Test.
However at home since the arrival of the cricketers from their now infamous desert debacle, it has been a hive of activity.
There were a series of brainstorming cricket meetings with Sports Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage at the centre. At these meetings the cricket officials and seniors in the team explained matters to the minister.
Those meetings initially helped the short-sighted Lankan cricket selectors to pull their feet out of their mouths and think sensibly. The very selectors who boldly roared saying that the ‘prolific Lankan middle order batsman Thilan Samaraweera’s age at 35 was a matter of concern and he was not in their short term plans’ meekly retracted at the eleventh hour and included him in the tour squad blurting out an excuse to the effect that Samaraweera is a cover for injured Mahela Jayawardena.
Yet at this end, we feel that if the selectors had any kind of self respect or regard to their justifiable sense of cricket, they should offer their resignations. The Samaraweera faux pas was one of the worst selector blunders in recent times. So much so the fault was so glaring that it even reflected with our weak-kneed batting performances on the desert sand.
In the same tone, when the senior cricketers had discussions with the minister in a separate meeting on Tuesday they too had pointed out that the crux of the problem was miscommunication among the selectors, the coaching administration and the seniors players. A typical situation when there is weak link at the helm. The case in point is that it is now almost common knowledge that the moves were not initiated at the selectors’ table.
On our October 30 issue, we quoted from an article written by the late English writer Peter Roebuck. It read: “Sri Lanka cricket appears to be a house divided. At present the team is led by its third best captain. Off the field chaos continues; with interim committees, political interference, empty accounts, high legal fees and wide spread accusations of cronyism.
“Sanath Jayasuriya has long enjoyed the backing of the governing party. Senior Sri Lanka players were reportedly aghast that his name was even mentioned as a candidate for the World Cup, because his form had long been abysmal. Despite intense lobbying it did not come to pass because they played well and he did not. Still the prospect bound the team together. Instead he was granted a farewell ODI in England by political decree.
“Now Jayasuriya has become among the most powerful men in Sri Lanka cricket, able to offer places on the board to people considered suitable.”
If this argument holds any water the case in point is almost through. We also would like to ask who was behind the curtain when names were sent to the Minister to pick the present set of selectors.
It is also common knowledge, though it is the minister who has the final authority on picking the selectors, usually the names for that purpose is sent to the minister by the cricketing authority. What we would like to know is: who is the real cricket authority who picked the initial set of names?
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| The inclusion of Thilan Samaraweera in the South Africa tour squad proved that even the all mighty cricket selectors have to swallow their pride at times. |
The great divide in Sri Lanka cricket began in 2007 when the then selectors led by Asantha de Mel dropped Jayasuriya from the Lankan tour of England and then he was reinstated in the middle of the tour through political means and not pure cricket intentions. Yet, the move paid off its dividends hugely as Jayasuriya was almost solely responsible for devastating the English pride with electric power hitting that stunned the whole cricketing world. Nevertheless that very move had perforated the Lankan dressing room into two halves. Ironically at that time both camps were strong. At one hand it was skipper Mahela Jayawardena and co. with the backing of some of the seniors plus the off the field management. While at the other end it was Jayasuriya and the other half of the seniors with an axe to grind.
In 2007, Sri Lankans ended up as the runners-up of the cricket World Cup and a few days later Mahela suddenly said ‘enough is enough’.
Sangakkara who took over from Jayawardena also did not have a complete smooth drive. He also had the same patches on his tyres too. However, by the 2011 World Cup some of those patches were mended even by some drastic moves. The rest is history and the Lankan wagon is driven on deflated tyres now.
Coming back to Samaraweera episode there are two or three angles to look at. First they could take Samaraweera and play an Atapattu on him. He could be taken on a ‘tourist visa’ and be forced to be a spectator.
The other angle is now that Samaraweera is in, he will be under pressure to perform as he was included against the will of some individuals. But, in the midst if outside pressure is exerted on Samaraweera while on tour, it could also mentally affect his batting performances.
Last week, when some of the senior past cricketers met the minister to discuss the declining standards of Lankan cricket, they pointed out that the reason for the recent poor performance was not only the retirement of the Murali-Vaas combination, but also the weak captaincy of Tillekeratne Dilshan. According to them, he often looks a third party on the playing field.
They had given the Sports Minister some good points to ponder. With only a short distance away from the T-20 World Championship to be staged in Sri Lanka, the inadequate captaincy skills may become a huge issue if remedial measures are not implemented urgently. They had pointed out it would be prudent if Mahela Jayawardena could be invited to take over the reins up to the T-20 championships and then hand over the subject to Angelo Mathews or else let the youngster who evidently does have the skills and attitude, take over and run to the post and keep looking beyond.
The present selectors were still mug enough to re-appoint T.M. Dilshan as captain for the South African tour. Finally it is Dilshan who is paying the price for the crown that was thrust upon him for someone else to score a point. Dilshan who has been a potential match winner for Sri Lanka during the past few years is now fighting for survival.
In a few weeks we certainly will see the emergence of a new administration which will preside over the game of cricket. They now have a huge task at hand. They will have to clear the stables in such a manner that some elements, who are not in direct administration, however powerful they may be, are kept at bay. Cricket should be brought back to its original free spirited Lankan form. If any one desires to meddle with things let him come forward and be elected.
Tell them the democratic ways are back in cricket.
PS: Still no one has spoken about Randiv. The day is not very far when that happens. Certainly Randiv is a better spinner than all spinners in the selection panel put together. |
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