The touring Sri Lankan team will play New Zealand in the second ODI match today. Overcoming the indignity of having to try their luck in a qualifying tournament for the first time in the 48-year history of the ODI World Cup heavily rest on the remaining two matches with the New Zealand.
The Sri Lankan team, which won a trophy and two runners-up titles by playing in all the 12 ODI World Cup tournaments held since 1975, could loose its chance to directly participate in the tournament to be held in India at the end of this year. Only the top eight teams on the ICC Super League ODI points table will qualify directly for the World Cup. Already 7 teams have been selected. Sri Lanka, South Africa and Ireland are battling it out to make the 8th team of the group.
After losing the first match of this Super League series, the Sri Lankan team now has to wait for the today’s second match and the final match few days later, but also for the match between South Africa and the Netherlands and the match between Ireland and Bangladesh. Ireland against Bangladesh however has an advantage over South Africa against Netherlands.
On the other hand, it seems that New Zealand is not ready to lose the remaining two matches even though there are a majority of players are inexperience due to the amazing performance shown by them in the first match. As cricket is a difficult game to predict, it is not reasonable to think that the Sri Lankan team will lose both the matches, the former Sri Lankan players are of the opinion. But the Sri Lankan team is at a disadvantage from all sides.
On the other hand, former players are wondering why the Sri Lankan cricket consultant coath Mahela Jayawardena, who earns a monthly salary of over 60 lakh rupees, did not join the New Zealand tour. While one can argue that the cricket mentor does not need to be with the team all the time, one cannot help but wonder when he was with the team. The foreign media had reported that he was in America in the past few days, and that he had gone there fulfilling his duties for Mumbai Indians, a team owner of the international league tournament in that country. It was reported that the chief consultant of the Sri Lankan cricket team was not with the team during the New Zealand Test defeat as well as when they suffered a heavy defeat in the first one-day match.
In the meantime, sports enthusiasts are questioning whether Thilina Kandambi who was sent to New Zealand as an additional coach with the team’s one-day tour to make up for Mahela’s absence. Thilina Kandambi is a batting coach, and Naveed Nawaz, who had already gone to New Zealand as the team’s assistant coach, is also a batting coach. Accordingly, there are two coaches for the batting of the team.
Head coach Chris Silverwood is known as a fastball coach. Meanwhile, Darshan Gamage has also joined the team as a fastball coach. Piyal Wijetunga as the Spinning Coach, Manoj Abey as the Bowling Coach are two other coaches. But according to the poor playing style of the Sri Lankan team in the first one-day match, it is clear that the instructions given to the players by these coaches are not enough. Otherwise, one may have a problem whether all the players are waiting for the cricket consultant Mahela Jayawardene to come to New Zealand.
Former players say that if Mahela does not get time to join the New Zealand tour, at least he have another chance to open the doors of the World Cup for the Sri Lankan team by joining the World Cup qualifying tournament to be held in Zimbabwe next June.
