Series Win An Indication SL Moving In Right Direction

Jun 5, 2014, 14:39 IST

Sri Lanka have been meticulously planning for the 2015 ICC World Cup. For Sri Lankans the focus on the World Cup started with the Asia Cup tournament in Bangladesh in February. That was exactly with one year to go for the tournament.

The Sri Lankans won that competition comfortably with an unbeaten record. But their main focus was to win series away from home before the challenge in Australia and New Zealand. Hence, the five-match series against England was high on the agenda.

That Sri Lanka overcame this challenge with a hard fought 3-2 win in tough conditions is indication that they are moving in the right direction. They were the losing the finalists in the last two World Cups in the West Indies (2007) and subcontinent (2011) and they want to go all the way in 2015.

Prior to the 2015 World Cup, there will be two short home series against South Africa and Pakistan, two strong outfits and then a lengthy seven-match series against New Zealand away from home just before the World Cup. These games, especially the lengthy tour of New Zealand, should get the team well prepared for a grand show in the World Cup.

They will savour the ODI series win in England for many reasons. One of the things that the selectors and the team management focused on was allowing younger players in the team to take more responsibility. They will be glad that vice-captain Lahiru Thirimanne kept his cool in the series deciding final game in Birmingham to post an unbeaten half-century during a tense run chase. Thirimanne was named Man of the Match

Ashan Priyanjana was another player who was tried out during the series and his 43 off 33 balls with two fours and two sixes in the second game in Durham was another highlight from a young player. Fielding was another discipline that Sri Lankans were putting a conscious effort to improve on and although this tour hasn't stood out for excellence on the field, there are signs that the team is gradually getting there. The ambition for Angelo Mathews' side is to be the best fielding unit during the World Cup above New Zealand, South Africa and Australia.

The senior players – Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and Tillakeratne Dilshan - all played crucial roles during the series and Sangakkara's brilliant century at Lord's in the fourth ODI, his first hundred at the Home of Cricket was the standout.

The series win is doubly special as the senior players were angered by the defection of Head Coach Paul Farbrace to England's ranks, a mere two weeks before the tour. There were concerns that England had the edge with Farbrace possessing a sound knowledge of Sri Lanka's strong points and weak links. The players, particularly, the seniors were pumped up to prove that Farbrace defection wasn't a major blow.

The icing on the cake was the series win resulting in Sri Lanka moving up to No 2 in the official ICC Rankings just below Australia.

The idea is to knock Australia out and take the number one spot before long, but for the home series against South Africa and Pakistan they will carry on a few more experiments in order to get the combination right for the World Cup. The proof for their meticulous planning is in their ODI record as this year of the 14 ODIs they have played, Sri Lanka have won 12. With so much planning going in ahead of the World Cup, there's no reason why they should not do well in Australia and New Zealand in eight months time.

Everything is not perfect though. The two defeats the tourists suffered at The Oval and Old Trafford saw humiliating batting collapses. In the first ODI at The Oval they were shot out for 144 as the top order failed to negotiate the moving ball well. At Old Trafford they hit a new low getting bowled out for 67 runs, their lowest against England and third lowest overall. The Sri Lankans definitely need to tighten their games when conditions aren't to their linking as it was in the case at The Oval and Old Trafford when the seam bowlers got plenty of assistance.

A huge drawback was offspinner Sachithra Senanayake, who was their highest wicket-taker during the series getting reported for a suspect bowling action. Senanayake's action now will come under the microscope and his reporting has upset Sri Lanka's planning somewhat. They weren't too pleased when the bowler was reported after they had squared the series and just before the deciding ODI.

It was a massive disappointment to see allrounder Thisara Perera being discarded after the first game at The Oval. The move was initiated in order to get the balance right. But Perera is not the kind of player Sri Lanka should be discarding to get the balance right. His name should be one of the first picks after the five names that are certain to play – Mathews, Malinga, Sangakkara, Jayawardene and Dilshan.

Mind you Perera was Man of the Match in the one off T20 international where his monstrous hitting powered the tourists to 183 runs. Perera smashed 49 off 20 deliveries with seven fours and two sixes before accounting to England skipper Eoin Morgan. Perera truly is a match-winner.

For some reason, the selectors believe that Perera is better suited for T20 cricket. But the selectors having indicated that they are desperately looking at fast bowling allrounders for the 2015 campaign, there's no way they can discard Thisara Perera.