Asian rivals in battle for Super Six honours (25 May 1999)

25 May 1999

Asian rivals in battle for Super Six honours

Trevor Chesterfield

It is the big one and the desperate World Cup champions Sri Lanka are all too aware of where defeat by India will leave them in this years event first round oblivion and humiliation as they pack their bags for Colmbo and an early departure.

And now, after Zimbabwe's defeat by England at Trent Bridge, in Nottingham, yesterday, Alistair Campbell's side, instead of emerging as Super Six surprises are also heading for Heathrow and home. They will be left to ponder where they went wrong and will follow the remainder of the tournament through the services of CricInfo as the Zimbabwe papers are well known for their wide coverage of soccer and little else.

What should not be forgotten is that in 1996 Sri Lanka earned points from two no shows. With Australia and West Indies more concerned about the safety of their players than honouring matches in Colombo, a city where a massive bomb had wrecked a building only weeks before. It meant they were fresher than most sides and going to Fiasalabad beat England who batted as squeamishly as they had performed during the tournament.

Then there was Eden Gardens, Calcutta and more glory in a riot-torn situation followed by the final against an Australia side who did not quite measure up to the toughness needed in such circumstances as Aravinda de Silva found form and partners in Arjuna Ranatunga and Hashan Tillekeratne. It was just enough to tip the scales in the men from the pearl of the Indian Ocean.

Now dreams of that triumph and repeating the West Indies success of winning in 1975 and 1979 are fast disappearing; age has caught up with the side and so have the conditions which have been far from kind. While Pramodya Wickremashinghe has been a success with his swing and seam, bowling some superb spells at time, support has been erratic and the batting has rarely been consistent.

Which is where they could lose out to the Indians whose batting has been largely consistent and bowling decidedly mediocre to average: too many wides, too many four balls and too many free hits have seen sides such as Zimbabwe upset India's hopes of an easier passage into the Super Sixes. Sri Lanka have not helped their cause, either, through erratic selections.

You have to also admire the eagerness of their players to do better and the politeness of their supporters who have had to smile bravely through their tears of defeat at Lord's and Northampton. Beating Zimbabwe placed a few crumbs of hope on their table, but victory over India is what they need most; then they can go to Northlands Road in Southampton on Sunday in the hope that the match with Kenya is not rain affected.

Psychologically, Sri Lanka seemed to have been living in another world in both opening matches of the tournament. Whatever excuses they had made, selection blunders against England led to the first signs they had gone for the wrong options. Just as the West Indies did against Pakistan when they filled their side with batsmen who were part times bowler, and lost. Sri Lanka tried to repair the damage for the game against South Africa. That failed as well and when they finally got it right against Zimbabwe it was only the obduracy of Marvan Atapattu which kept the innings afloat as the middle again showed signs of buckling. De Silva and Ranatunga have not batted with confidence against the Dukes white ball which has undone other teams.

With their captain, Mohammad Azaharuddin, all too aware of the complications involved should today's game at County Ground in Tauton be the first to be rain affected, the need to beat Sri Lanka takes on some urgency. Sachin Tendulkar's return, with the first century of the tournament against lightweight bowling from Kenya, would have given them a mental lift at a time they seemed to be flagging.

It is a game which will draw millions of TV viewers around the globe and the knife edge on which the result is poised will become the guillotine for the loser.

Source :: Trevor Chesterfield