Good start for Lankan cricketers

Chris Dhambarage

Sri Lanka made a spectacular start to the 2010 cricket season when they upstaged the favourites India by four wickets in the Tri Nation limited overs tournament final worked off in Dhaka, Bangladesh recently.

This win also helped the Lankans to avenge their previous defeat against their Asian rivals following a humiliating Test and ODI series defeat last year away from home.

But this time the islanders were well prepared to face the challenge despite going through a series of injuries to a couple of key players.

Even then the most encouraging fact that came out from the series was the excellent performances of the youngsters who were able to cope up with the pressure and come out victorious quite admirably.

Skipper Kumar Sangakkara has always insisted that they should groom some youngsters to meet the future demand and this time they were successful in giving them the opportunity at the correct time.

The most important fact is to make certain that these new players made it to the national team at the correct time and enjoyed the situation whether in batting, bowling or fielding. Sri Lanka were successful in lifting the title because they provided a great amount of opportunities and openings to the youngsters who formed a formidable combination along with the senior players.

The great amount of experience that they achieved from these match situations are really valuable in further enhancing their career prospects. Now they should be able to carry that form into the next level and be more competitive and consistent on the field which will make Sri Lanka always a tough opposition to beat. All rounder Thisara Perera, spinner Suraj Randiv and opening batsman Lahiru Thirimanna had a highly satisfying tournament which they would always cherish in their career. Their contributions may have come in a small way but it did help Sri Lanka to bounce back and redeem some of their lost prestige.

Together with the big guns in the line- up they were successful in restricting the powerful Indian batting to 245 runs after Sangakkara had elected to field first. Sri Lanka seems to have preserved the best for the last as they delivered the final nail through their two fast bowlers Nuwan Kulasekera and Chanka Welagedera.

New ball bowler Kulasekera's performance in fact was quite remarkable as he snapped up four key wickets and went on to pocket his first Man of the Match award away from home. Skipper Sangakkara should be complemented for selecting Kulasekera ahead of Suranga Lakmal who is another promising fast bowler in the line-up.

The decision turned out to be a wise one as experience prevailed over youth and enthusiasm with Kulasekera rising to the big occasion in a spectacular manner. He justified his position as one of the top rank players in the ICC One Day Rankings by running through the star studded Indian batting with a great spell of bowling.

Together with his partner Chanaka Welagedera they were able to break the back bone of the Indian batting which had collapsed to 60 for 5 at one stage. Even then Sri Lanka were left with a victory target of 246 runs at the end and they achieved that with nine deliveries to spare.

The presence of former captain Mahela Jayawardena who rejoined the squad mid way in the series turned out to be crucial as he played a sterling role in guiding the team towards victory. He justified once again that he is a player for the big occasion while stroking an unbeaten 71 under tremendous pressure.

Skipper Kumar Sangakkara also completed a highly successful tournament where he ended up by winning the Man of the Series award for his outstanding performances with the bat and behind the stumps where he snapped up his 300th victim in one day internationals.