The Fifth Column

23rd May 1999

To keep heights reached is difficult

My dear Arjuna,

I know I am writing to you at a time when you must be feeling quite a bit hot under the collar, even though they like to refer to you as 'Captain Cool'.

And, after watching how you and your mates performed on Wednesday you can hardly blame them either, can you? We are, after all, the world champions and we have a reputation to protect and that is why everybody is wondering what has gone wrong with almost the same eleven people who brought home the cup just three years ago.

I know that in the rush to find fault and give excuses, they will be quick to blame you. They will blame you for getting rid of Whatmore and Gurusinha and some people blamed you even when Mahanama was dropped from the team some time ago. Some have also accused you of picking virtually your club team for the national side!

There are those who say that you have become a dictator in the cricket establishment. It is sad to say so but the recent elections at the Cricket Board where your brothers were seen to play a major role, did nothing to help dispel these rumours.

And you must also remember that you and your team are no longer amateurs. You are now professionals and people expect results from professionals. You earn a very decent living by local standards and you are required to perform in return. After all, you are not paid to tell us the virtues of mosquito coils, cement or soya meat though some seem to do that better than playing cricket!

I know you will be the first to say that you cannot win everyday and I fully agree with that. But isn't it also true then that we cannot lose everyday. And, even if we lose can't we put up a decent fight before losing? Arjuna, these are some of the questions people want answers to.

I really do not know which of the accusations against you are justified. What I do know is that we as a nation should not be ungrateful for what you have done for the country and it's cricket for the past 15 years. What you did by winning the World Cup in 1996 was much more than what any politician did to put our country in the international limelight- possibly with the exception of Ms. Bandaranaike becoming the world's first woman Prime Minister and we must not be ungrateful in a hurry.

I do also remember you had the courage of your convictions to stand up for your teammates when they were in trouble. Everyone remembers how you have stood up and fought on Murali's behalf in recent times but few now remember that your own cricketing future was threatened when you stood up for Aravinda some years ago.

But then, we all know don't we, that the memories of Sri Lankans are very short which is why we like to change our governments and our leaders every now and then. But, Arjuna there are other sides to the story also and you should be aware of it. Let me warn you that the reception you will get when you return from the tournament this year will be very different to the welcome you received in 1996!

But that is all the more reason why you should take heart and do well at least in the remaining matches. It has been said before that you are at your best when the odds are against you. I really hope you can prove that to us again, for one last time. Best of luck, then, for the remaining matches; you are sure to need a lot of it!

Yours truly,

Punchi Putha.

PS- Do you remember what happened to JR? He was hailed as a great leader because he took the country to new heights. They even compared him to Napoleon at that time. But I think he later realised that it was more difficult to stay at the top than it was to get there. But by then it was too late and when he left there were very few left to say something good about him. Arjuna, didn't someone compare you to Napoleon last week?

Rajpal Abeynayake's Column

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