Asia Cup 2018: 3 Reasons Sri Lanka's exit should not surprise you

Sri Lanka's first-round exit from this year's ODI Asia Cup - which they were defending - should not really come across as a surprise, unless you've not been following much cricket recently.

The dip in the form of one of the best Asian teams of the 90's and the 2000's has touched rock bottom, to say the least. While the team still has just about enough time to prepare for the World Cup next June, their shocking exit to two teams that did not play a single Test match before 2000 won't be easy to digest.

The brighter side is that Sri Lanka is still one of the most respected teams for their past achievements. Their rapid emergence in cricketing circles during the 90's, topped by their 1996 World Cup win took the world by surprise.

But if Bangladesh's resurgence after losing for the most part of this century surprised you, Afghanistan's near-exponential growth in the last three years can be compared to Sri Lanka's performances during the 90's.

But what is the reason, that despite challenging World Champion sides like Australia, India, and Pakistan in the last decade, Sri Lanka has now touched such a low? Read on to find out why a country that still possesses many talented players, will go back victory-less from the Asia Cup.

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#3 Sri Lanka's recent form

Sri Lanka's first-round Champions Trophy exit last year was certainly not their worst retreat in this phase.

Sri Lanka would have had to play the World Cup qualifiers this year, had West Indies beaten England 4-0 in the ODI Series in England last year. But since West Indies could not do it, Sri Lanka, despite losing 0-5 to Pakistan in the U.A.E., made it to World Cup 2019 directly.

But that defeat was just one of the many limited overs defeat Sri Lanka have suffered in the recent past. After being unable to reach the World Cup semifinal after 16 years, Sri Lanka lost a home Test series against India after 22 years.

Sri Lanka could only manage one win against three losses to exit the 2016 World T20 in the first round. They were also eliminated in the first round of last year's ICC Champions Trophy, which was followed by Zimbabwe winning their ODI tour of Sri Lanka.

That was followed by an all-format whitewash where India beat Sri Lanka in all of the three Tests, five ODI's and only T20I in the latter team's den. After being humiliated in UAE and Pakistan, Sri Lanka again lost all formats on their return tour to India.

In this year's Nidahas Trophy played in Sri Lanka, the home team failed to reach the final of the triangular series. The team even lost a home ODI series against South Africa last month.

Their loss to Bangladesh in this Asia Cup's tournament opener did not come as a surprise, as Bangladesh have emerged a winning side at home and away in the last decade. Looks like Bangladesh and Sri Lanka's fortunes have interchanged in this period, at least for the meanwhile.

#2 Afghanistan's Rapid Rise

Though they lack experience, Afghanistan's approach to the game can be compared to any top team globally.

Though Afghanistan did play in the 2015 World Cup, defeating Scotland - their fortunes have changed drastically ever since. The team surprised everyone by qualifying for the World T20 in 2016, leaving behind a Test team like Zimbabwe. In the main tournament, Afghanistan was the only team to defeat West Indies - the winners of that tournament.

Winning many intercontinental and associate championships, Afghanistan's big moment came when they defeated now-Test playing nation Ireland in both ODI and T20I series, and beat West Indies in an ODI on the latter's home turf.

A World Cup qualification was going to be difficult this time, as ICC decided to play only ten teams in the 2019 World Cup. This would include the top eight ODI teams (which did not include Afghanistan) and the two finalists of the 2018 World Cup Qualifier.

Though Afghanistan just managed to make it through to the second round of the tournament after losing three out of four matches in the first round - thanks to a superior net run rate - they came back strongly in the super sixes.

They beat tournament favorites West Indies, second favorites Ireland as well as UAE to make it to the finals and thus the World Cup. They even defeated West Indies yet again in the final, and were awarded Test status three months later.

#1 Lack of a stability in Sri Lanka's team composition

The team's confidence has certainly suffered from the retirement of key players, followed by a string of losses

Less than a decade years ago, Sri Lanka had the services of greats like Sanath Jayasuriya, Muttiah Muralitharan, Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara, Chaminda Vaas, Tilakaratne Dilshan, and Thilan Samaraweera - to name a few. The retirement of Mahela and Sanga with the 2015 World Cup, followed by Dilshan's forced retirement - brought an end to that era.

Though Sri Lanka still has players like Lasith Malinga, Upul Tharanga, Angelo Matthews and Thisara Perera from that golden era - the fact is that most of them are nearing the end of their careers. Around the beginning of this decade, while Sanga and Mahela solidified the batting, the seam bowling department was headed by Malinga and Nuwan Kulasekara, while Murali, Rangana Herath, and Ajantha Mendis took care of the spin department.

While Sri Lanka prefers playing Herath only in Tests, Kulasekara - as well as Malinga and Matthews have had to deal with injuries owing to their aging. While Sri Lanka has produced many talented players in the last couple of years, such as Kusal Perera, Akila Dananjaya, Niroshan Dickwella, and Dasun Shanaka - the island nation still has to do a lot in order to achieve their once world-challenging winning form.

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