The "silly points"

A blog by TCup4Six:

The ODI series was always going to be difficult -
I just didn’t realise just how difficult it would eventually be to win against such a determined West Indian outfit. The scoreline shows 2-0, and had it not been for the rain, it might just as well have been a series whitewash, but if I look beyond my initial disappointment of not winning a single ODI match on this tour, there are some obvious positives to take home.

Our Bowling:

4 of our 5 front-line bowlers were absent during this series, which put the spotlight squarely on the likes of Kulasekara, Thushara, Amarasinghe, and Mendis. In the little time they had out there, Kulasekara did well to emerge with 6 wickets in the 21 overs he bowled.

Ajantha Mendis considers his options after being given the ball, West Indies v Sri Lanka, 2nd ODI, Trinidad, April 12, 2008 © AFP

The other shining star is Mendis and I feel that with Murali played in selective games, we’ll be seeing very much more from him. Thushara did not get much time in the middle, but it can’t be often that a player gets a wicket with his first ball on debut! Amarasinghe looked a little off color on this tour, but I do believe that he has the determination to come back strong.
On the other hand, we were always going to struggle without Malinga, Fernando, and Maharoof, and I have no doubt that our lack of penetration in our bowling this series is a one off. With the return of our pace trio, our bowling will be back to being world class!

Our batting:

Kapugedara is my pick of the Sri Lankan batsmen. His excellent 95 in the first ODI when everyone else fell to pieces was critical in setting up a competitive total. The fact that he played under pressure in the way he did shows that he has the maturity to make it at the highest level of the game. Udawatte had three outings where he made 0, 14, and 73 respectively. His 73 in the last innings was expectedly a cautious one, but he’s shown what he’s capable at this level of the game. He looks to be an agressive cricketer, and given time, he’ll fit into the opening role quite nicely. It was nice to see Weeraratne hit form in the last ODI, and his good strike rate in the last match is testimony to his ability to perform the pinch-hitting role that we lack in the lower middle order. Silva, I’m afraid, is still a cause for concern.

What is interesting here is that in both the batting and bowling desciplines, it was the youngsters who performed! Sangakarra and Mahela were forgettable, and as for Tharanga, well, enough said about him. I believe that Warnapura has made his mark in the test arena, and there is no doubt in my mind that the opening combination we must persist with (at least fo a period of time) is that of Warnapura/Udawatte. Sangakarra to come one down….

Our Fielding:

Having not watched the matches, I’d like to heard from those of you who have a little bit on what our fielding was like….