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Rejuvenated Sri Lanka crush listless Australia

Is this Sri Lankan cricket's reckoning? (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
Expert
18th August, 2016
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Sri Lanka will head to Zimbabwe in October as a Test team rejuvenated and surging with confidence after flattening Australia in Colombo yesterday, to complete a 3-0 whitewash.

Even in their home country, few pundits tipped Sri Lanka to win this series, let alone humiliate the world’s number one ranked Test team.

Many predicted a series win for Australia, who had lost only one Test in history to the Lions – and that result coming after they were reduced to nine men early in the match.

Some pundits, like myself, were more bullish than others about Australia’s chances, and have had our faces pelted with eggs.

In this gig you’re a bit like an umpire – when you get things right, people rarely notice, but when you make the wrong call it’s highlighted and scrutinised. Just like umpires, you cop the whacks and move on.

There’s always another match around the bend, another series promising intrigue and surprises.

In Sri Lanka’s case, that contest should be a two-Test series in Zimbabwe. I say “should” because there have been reports those Tests could be cancelled and replaced by a meaningless ODI tri-series between those two sides and the West Indies.

Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe both would suffer from such a money-motivated decision. Zimbabwe have been starved of long-form cricket for years now, for a variety of reasons, and this has stunted their progress as a Test nation.

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Sri Lanka, meanwhile, have a three-Test series in South Africa in December. Playing two Tests in Zimbabwe just before that tour would benefit their preparation and give them the opportunity to build on the wave of momentum they’ve generated in sweeping Australia.

They have a trove of positives to haul away from this series. In the first Test, two youngsters announced themselves as potential ten-year players. Sri Lanka were staring at defeat at Kandy, three wickets down in their second dig and still trailing by 45 runs, when 21-year-old batsman Kusal Mendis produced a miraculous 176.

Chinaman Lakshan Sandakan ensured Mendis’ labour was not wasted, snaring seven wickets on debut as his side recorded a rousing come-from-behind win. Mendis is phenomenally composed for a batsman so young, while Sandakan’s bulging back of tricks will befuddle many opponents in the years to come.

Then, at Galle, off-spinner Dilruwan Perera surprised the Australians when he sprung out of the shadow of champion tweaker Rangana Herath. Perera proved to himself and his teammates that he, too, can be the destroyer, the leading man.

As the series wound to a close in Colombo, batsmen Dhananjaya de Silva and Kausal Silva cemented their places, while wicketkeeper Dinesh Chandimal confirmed his standing as an elite Test player.

In his debut Test series, 24-year-old all-rounder de Silva batted with equal measures of circumspection and daring, while also sending down some handy overs of finger spin. Silva had a nightmare start to the series, with five single-figure scores, before grinding a second innings 115 at Colombo which gave his team an impregnable lead.

Chandimal, meanwhile, underscored his growing reputation as the best young keeper-batsman in Test cricket. The 26-year-old was unobtrusive behind the stumps and elegant in front of them. His 250 runs at 42 for the series took his Test record to 2257 runs at 44, including seven centuries from 31 matches.

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Along with skipper Angelo Mathews, Chandimal has formed the backbone of the Sri Lankan batting line-up since the retirements of legendary pair Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene. In this series however, youngsters Mendis and de Silva were the leading runscorers, with 296 at 49, and 325 at 65 respectively.

With Sandakan and Dilruwan Perera offering fine support to Herath, Sri Lanka received a nice spread of contributions. This was in distinct contrast to the Australians, who relied almost entirely on one man – herculean fast bowler Mitchell Starc.

This series should haunt the tourists. It also will live long in the memories of the Sri Lankans, who in years to come may remember it as the turning point for their young, rebuilding side.

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