Sadeera – on a path of creating his own identity
It was a small chase. A target of 157 off 300 balls seemed a walk in the park for the Sri Lankans under excellent batting conditions. But two quick wickets ignited a glimmer of hope for England who had been looking for some redemption after a horrendous display with the bat.
Then Sadeera Samarawickrema and Pathum Nissanka put on an unfinished partnership allowing Sri Lanka to thrash the Englishmen clinically and convincingly.
Nissanka has been in excellent form in the tournament, stroking four back-to-back half centuries. He must be applauded for his consistency at the top of the order. But it was Samarawickerma who has stood out in this tournament with two consecutive match-winning performances.
Samarawickrema has been a picture of consistency, topping the batting charts for Sri Lanka with 295 runs in five innings. He holds the overall sixth place among the top-run scorers in the tournament. He stroked a maiden century, 108 against Pakistan, although Sri Lanka failed to defend a massive 344 in their second game in Hyderabad.
But his unbeaten 91 set up Sri Lanka’s first win in the tournament over Netherlands before he produced a gem of an innings against England—an unbeaten 65 to lead Sri Lanka’s victory.
The text-book cover-drive off the first ball he faced from David Willey was as good as those exquisite cover drives of maestro Mahela Jayawardena. It was a perfect shot, played with minimal footwork and precise placement as he punched it through the covers with effortless grace to kick off his innings with a boundary. During his unbeaten knock, he flicked, swept, drove and pulled, displaying the array of shots he has mastered over the years.
With a wide array of strokes in his stock, Samarawickrama has the ability to score at a good pace in white-ball cricket. He is also a safe fielder at any position, including behind the wicket.
His hunger for success has earned Samarawickrema administration from his fans and, more importantly, in him Sri Lanka have found a man with solid technique and elegance to anchor the innings at No.4. For this, Samarawickrema pays tribute to his father—the man who he says was his first coach.
“I play cricket because of him,” Samarawickrema said.
“My techniques, the temperament, all that I learned from him…and even to date, I go to him. I speak to him all the time, no matter which level I am playing cricket”.
Samarawickrema has scored 771 runs at 51.46 this year, with a century and six half-centuries as he made the best opportunity of the second chance he received to live his dream. He admitted that he had not been ready when the breakthrough first came in 2017.
“I don’t think I was fully ready for that challenge,” he reflected of his debut with the national team.
“I have played domestic and Sri Lanka ‘A’ level but when I joined the national team, I realised the difference between those two levels,” he said.
“There’s a big difference and it took me little time to understand the game, how to survive and how to score runs,” said the former Josephian, who now dons jersey number 23, once worn by the iconic TM Dilshan.
Samarawickrema soon went out of the selectors’ radar. He was disappointed but had the grit and determination to train hard to perfection.
“My father told me getting picked and dropped can happen to anyone. But what is important was to keep your head straight. Because at the national level what is important is to have a strong mind in addition to your technique,” he said.
“I really worked hard during the time I was away from the national team. I learnt a lot. Watched a lot of matches and studied how to finish a match. I did these during club matches and with the Sri Lanka ‘A’ team. I just transformed that to my game now. I trust my game and fear no bowler. This has helped me be consistent with the bat,” he added.
The 28-year-old wicketkeeper/batter of Colombo Colts Cricket Club, is surely willing to make jersey number a brand of his own, with the unique form and fame he’s established overcoming fear and failure with a straight head.