9 Issues Sri Lanka need to address before World Cup 2015

Angelo Mathews

The struggle to acclimatize – Slow starters

Sri Lanka’s batting has imploded in the first match of every One Day International (ODI) series they have played in 2014, which indicates that their batsmen have initially struggled to adapt to the demands of the conditions.

As far as ODIs are concerned, for Sri Lanka, the year 2014 effectively kicked off with them playing Bangladesh in February after having spent the previous two months in the United Arab Emirates locking horns with Pakistan. Their batsmen clearly exhibited difficulties in coming to terms with the Bangladeshi conditions, slumping to 67/8 in the first ODI, at Dhaka. Thanks to a match-saving knock from Thisara Perera, the visitors managed to score 180, which proved to be enough to win the match.

By the time they won the Asia Cup and the World Cup T20, both of which were held in Bangladesh, beating more favoured teams, they were a well-oiled machine.

When the tour to the British Isles began, Sri Lanka once again struggled to adapt to the conditions in Ireland with their batting order only managing 219 against the home team. In the first match of the 5-match series against England, Sri Lanka were bowled out for a total of 144. Even though the visitors eventually emerged victorious in that series, they carried with them the same problem for the next series, as well, this time failing to chase down South Africa’s 304 at their own backyard.

Once again at home against Pakistan, the Lankan top order fumbled; however, thanks to the lower-middle order, they reached a modest 275 runs, which – at the end of day – was not adequate.

In all, Sri Lanka have lost the first match of a series 4 out of 5 times this year. Their 7-match series against New Zealand and the two Tests that follow would help them learn the art of survival Down Under and attune better.

Chasing huge totals – Not a single successful 300+ run chase this year

Sri Lankan team has been too reliant on its bowling attack to win matches. This is best explained by the fact that, in 2014, they are yet to chase a target when the required-rate has been in excess of six, with the highest run-chase being 265 against India, riding on the back of a stupendous innings from Kumar Sangakkara.

The Islanders have been stalled all four times when they had to score more than run-a-ball to win a match. They have found building partnerships a tougher ask when requested to perform an uphill task to offset the poor performance of the bowling attack, which has generally been the pointed edge of Sri Lanka’s sword.

Against England, when Sri Lanka were expected to chase down 247 in 32 overs, their batsmen succumbed to 144 all out with the highest partnership being 44. The highest partnership that the side has managed in 6 rpo+ run-chases is 83, a tame one between Angelo Mathews and Ashan Priyanjan against South Africa in the 3rd ODI when their chances of winning that match had significantly petered out.

Opposition	Target	Final Score	Highest Partnership
England	247 (32 overs)	144	44
South Africa	304	229	52
South Africa	339	257	83
India	363	194	31

Sri Lanka need to learn the art of maintaining a balance between attack and defence when chasing huge totals. One glaring mistake that the batting order made was to look for boundaries, which led to them often compromising on opportunities to take singles. Except in the first game against South Africa when Sangakkara scored 88, Sri Lanka failed to have any of their top 4 bat through the innings.

Sangakkara has traditionally been the sheet anchor of Sri Lanka; if they are to depend on him to increase the pace of of the innings, then the team management will have to find a someone to fill his role. With the 50-over World Cup less than 100 days away, it ain’t happening.

Ashan Priyanjan’s succession of failures – the odd one out

Ashan Priyanjan made a promising start to his ODI career by smashing the Pakistani bowling attack to record his highest ODI score of 74, but, since then, he has failed to impress, save his 15-ball 39 against Pakistan in August. Priyanjan’s role has been to finish the innings, but he has rarely done it to perfection.

Even though his part time off-spin has given Sri Lanka the much-needed balance, how long will the selectors forbear his batting failures for his part time off-breaks is a question that needs to be answered.

Priyanjan has played 21 games so far averaging a measly 23.64 with the bat with two half-centuries. His off-breaks have earned him 5 wickets at an average of 46.60.

Is the persistence with Priyanjan the result of Sri Lanka’s lack of options after Dinesh Chandimal's and Lahiru Thirimanne’s underwhelming performances? Or is Priyanjan retained to show Chandimal and Thirimanne that they can no more find places in the side solely on potential and that they need to do exceptionally well to make a return?

Sending the duo back to work on their basics has obviously yielded better results. The two young guns have tangoed well to win gold in the Asian Games and their returns against the West Indies A are encouraging.

Inability to finish innings – Mathews back to No. 6?

This may come as a surprise with Sri Lanka possessing one of the best finishers in the modern game: Angelo Mathews.

Opposition	Final Score	Runs in last 10 overs	Wickets lost in last 10 overs	Mathews in during last 10? If yes, Strike-rate	Thisara in during last 10? If yes, Strike-rate	Point to be noted
Bangladesh	180	49	2	No	140.35	Sri Lanka were 8 down for 67
Bangladesh	289/6	100	2	143.58	0.00	Sangakkara stayed till the 47th over
Pakistan	296/6	64	2	110	66.66
Afghanistan	253/6	79	1	109.75	82.60
Ireland	219/8	81	2	No	No	Kulasekera 42 off 34 balls
England	256/8	87	4	85.71	No
England	300/9	83	6	100.00	No
South Africa	267/10	60	6	89.47	No
Pakistan	275/7	105	3	104.7	130	Priyanjan 39 off 15 in the last 10
Pakistan	310/9	101	3	80.86	180.55	Mathews batted from the 11th over
India	274/8	69	2	91.08	90.90	Sri Lanka were 6 down at the start of the 40th over
India	242	67	3	No	No

* Sri Lanka’s 67 all out against England has been ignored

The above table shows that Sri Lanka have been inconsistent in effectively finishing off an innings. Thisara, Sri Lanka’s wrecker-in-chief at the death, wasn’t featuring in the team regularly till the Pakistan series. But whenever the big hitting all-rounder has fired, Sri Lanka have plundered runs in the last 10 overs. Mathews’ promotion to number five has made him unavailable during the death in certain games, which has compounded the issue.

Even though Sri Lanka has on an average scored in excess of 80 in the last 10 overs, they have lost too many wickets, resulting in them not reaching the target that they would have hoped to get.

The team lost too many wickets in the middle overs against India, which deprived them from going bonkers at the death. But the lower-middle order’s failures against South Africa and England are alarming. Sri Lanka would ideally want Thisara to come in during the last 10, not prior to that. Mathews could also consider demoting himself to number 6 to shepherd the tail so as to achieve the necessary last minute surge.

Kushal Perera (batting) has been a let-down

Thirimanne and Chandimal – Fit them right

Even though Sri Lanka are currently without the services of its two young stars, there is no denying the fact that they will have a huge role to play in the team’s preparation for the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

But the team think-tank will have to find the right places for them in the batting order in order to get the best out of them, especially after the failures of those who were tried in the duo’s places.

Chandimal batted at number four against Bangladesh in the bilateral series in the early part of 2014. He failed twice but came back with a match-winning 64 in the third match.

The return of Jayawardene saw Chandimal being demoted lower down the order during the Asia Cup. Coming at number 8 against Pakistan, Chandimal scored an unbeaten 19 off 19 balls and 26 against Afghanistan at number 5 stitching together a partnership of 74 with Sangakkara. Against India, however, the 24-year-old right-hander was clean bowled by a ripper for a golden duck.

Batting at number 4 against Ireland, Chandimal scored 39, building on which Sri Lanka were able to post a defendable score.

Against England, Chandimal returned with the scores of 8, 14 and 6 at number 6, 7 and 5 respectively. Against Pakistan, once again batting at number 5, Chandimal was dismissed for 6 runs.

It is clearly evident that Chandimal has been pushed up and down the order, leaving him with no breathing space to settle down into a stable position. Whenever Sri Lanka had a strong foundation from the top 3, Chandimal was pushed down to number 7 and 8 leaving him with no option of capitalizing on the foundation to score some runs for himself. And whenever there was a top order collapse, he was sent up and, as a result, succumbed to pressure.

History has it that Chandimal has fared exceptionally well in the top 3, and Sri Lanka would do well to give him a chance right up there.

Thirimanne, on the other hand, opened for Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup 2014 and was highly successful. But his slow-paced innings in the English surfaces pushed him to the middle order where he scored a composed 60 under difficult circumstances to help the team win the series.

Against South Africa, Thirimanne batted at number 5 and failed to make hefty scores.

But I believe that the left-hander’s composure and his ability to score at a consistent rate would make him an ideal number 5. His aloof attitude may help Sri Lanka immensely during run-chases, should he bat at number 5.

Inconsistent performances of the Big 4 – The need to come together

In the early part of 2014 and throughout 2013, Sri Lanka benefited immensely from Tillakaratne Dilshan’s and Sangakkara’s excellent run of form. But, since the Pakistan tour, the pair has failed to make consistent contributions. Sangakkara has scored only 112 runs in his last 6 games, masked by his 61 against India in one match, while Dilshan’s drives have been finding the fielders more often than the boundary.

In contrast, Mathews and Jayawerdene’s forms have been burgeoning, the latter’s since the series against Pakistan. Jayawerdene, since quitting Tests, has been in red hot form averaging in excess of 50. Mathews, on the other hand, has been “Captain Marvelous” for Sri Lanka, often reviving the team back from the jaws of defeat.

Sri Lanka would want their Big 4 to contribute in order to form a formidable batting order that can make up even if the bowlers fail to deliver.

Who partners Dilshan? Not Tharanga/Not Kushal

Sri Lanka once had the most belligerent opening partnership in the form of Romesh Kaluwitharana and Sanath Jayasuriya. When Kaluwithrana waned out, Marvan Atapattu stepped up and ruled the roost at the top order. But, since then, the Island nation has struggled to find a permanent opening partnership.

In 2011, Tharanga was on song and, combining with the evergreen Dilshan, gave Sri Lanka telling starts. But his form, of late, has been disheartening. The team management has experimented with Thirimanne, and his slow but steady batting seems to have cost them more than what it has earned.

Kusal Perera would be the ideal candidate to open the innings, with his unorthodox shots capable of even unsettling the best bowlers; however he, too, has not lived upto his reputation. Although it seems like one good innings can help him kick start his career, that one innings has eluded him for a very long time. Sri Lanka are yet to experiment with him in the middle order, but the already existing joust for the spot in the middle means Kusal’s only way of making it to the XI would be to fare well as an opener. A good two outings against India would do the team more good than to Kusal himself.

Sri Lanka might also opt for Dhanushka Gunathilaka who has had a fantastic 2014 with the A team. His off-breaks might become the deciding factor if the selectors are forced to choose between him and Kusal Perera.

Middle muddle – The big shoes of Muralitharan

Sri Lanka’s bowling in the middle overs has been toothless, which has helped batting teams pile up runs at this stage of the game.

While Ajantha Mendis has been consistent, the selectors’ tendency to hide him against certain attacks hasn’t done Sri Lanka’s bowling any good.

The team is in a desperate need for a wicket-taking spinner, and they would be praying for Mendis to do well against India. Senanayake even though economical has not been a wicket-taker, and there is still a question mark over his place in the side with him having to get his new action approved by ICC.

Since Muttiah Muralitharan’s retirement, Ajantha has picked up 46 wickets at the strike-rate of 26.7 and an average of 21.82 giving away just 4.9 runs per over. Sri Lanka should look forward to the 29-year-old to provide those breakthroughs during the middle overs to slow down opposition’s run scoring.

The decline of Nuwan Kulasekara

Barring Lasith Malinga, Sri Lankan pace bowling has been flat. Nuwan Kulasekara’s indifferent form hasn’t helped them, either.

Even though Thisara, when in full swing, can be a menace to the opposition as he showed against Pakistan and against India in the 3rd ODI, the management would want one of Shaminda Eranga and Dhammika Prasad to add the much-needed extra yard of pace, which will be vital during Sri Lanka’s campaign Down Under.

If either Eranga or Prasad can cement a place in the side, then Sri Lanka will have 3 pacemen who can pick up wickets at will, which will help Sri Lanka come out of their conservative approach against good batting sides.

In 2013, at Brisbane, Kulasekera swung the ball so viciously giving the Aussies a taste of their own medicine. Since Vaas' retirement, the right-arm seamer has given Sri Lanka some consistency in bowling in addition to being a good lower-order batsman. But, in 2014, his batting dwindled and then his bowling, too, followed the insidious path. In his last eight games, Kulasekera has picked up only one wicket.

The 32-year-old has lost the swing that he engenders in the early overs, and, with his pace gradually falling down, he is less likely to be a part of Sri Lanka’s World Cup squad, which will make the bowling attack fall short in terms of experience.