Tie-breaker ODI series
Lanka to capitalise on Flintoff’s absence
By Sa’adi Thawfeeq
Sri Lanka is to exploit the absence of Andrew Flintoff and capitalise on it fully when they take on England in a five-match one-day international series starting at the Rangiri Dambulla Stadium tomorrow.
Flintoff was forced to pull out of the Sri Lanka series and return home following a troublesome left ankle. The England all-rounder also missed out the last one-day series played between the two countries in 2006 where England lost at home 5-0.
“Andrew is a top class all-rounder. To have him in the side gives England more balance in their attack because he is a batting all-rounder who bowls really well,” Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene told ‘The Nation’.
“With him England’s combination is much better. Without him they will have to go for a different combination. He is a match-winner and his absence is obviously an advantage for us,” he said.
Jayawardene pointed out that although Sri Lanka won the last series played in England rather comprehensively the side England had brought to Sri Lanka was altogether a different set-up.
“They have got some really good all-rounders coming through. We met them in the World Cup and it was a very close game. They have a very young all-round side. We have to make sure we capitalise on that and play some really good cricket. England will be a good challenge for us. It’s a big season ahead of us and we need to make sure that we start on a very good note,” said Jayawardene.
“We have to be aware of certain players they have in their set-up, bowling all-rounders who will suit these conditions. We have to make sure we plan things properly and execute them to perfection. They also have some quality batsmen who play different roles, some we haven’t seen. We need to understand what those roles are and try counter-attacking it. We need to make sure we don’t get blind-sided on that,” he said.
Jayawardene stated that it was tough call for the selectors to pick leg-spinning all-rounder Kaushal Lokuarachchi ahead of another ‘leggie’ Malinga Bandara.
“Loku’s been performing really well in one-day internationals. We know what Bandara is capable of doing. Thinking of the future you’d never how long Sanath (Jayasuriya) is going to play cricket. If one day he stops playing that’s a bowling option we will be losing,” explained Jayawardene. “We might have to fit in a spinning all-rounder in the middle of our batting. It’s good for us to try a few things right now and see what Loku has to offer for our team and how we can have different combinations going forward,” he said.
Jayawardene stated that champion spinner Muttiah Muralitharan was still not 100 percent and doubted whether he is going to be fit for the series. Muralitharan is recovering from a strained right bicep which he sustained bowling long spells with English county Lancashire.
“It’s good to have Murali around but the reality is that we know he won’t be around for a long time. He won’t be playing all the matches. We need to give him adequate rest. Even the workload on Vaasy must not be too much. He is a fine performer and we can’t push him all the way. We need to find replacements and give them breaks in between,” said Jayawardene.
“When opportunities come we have to try new blood. We might not be that consistent in performances doing that but that’s the only way these guys will learn. There are a few guys we have earmarked. We will them bring slowly into the system. We tried a few during the Bangladesh series,” he said.
Left-arm fast bowler Chanaka Welagedera who bowled Sri Lanka Invitation XI to victory over Tamil Nadu in the Gopalan trophy tie, opening batsman Mahela Udawatta and off-spinning all-rounder Dilruwan Perera are some of the players in the short list.
Collingwood out to avenge 5-0 whitewash
England one-day captain Paul Collingwood believes he has the team to beat Sri Lanka and avenge their 5-0 thrashing at home last year.
“The squad we have got is exciting. A young bunch of guys who are excited about coming to a country that’s difficult to play cricket in. That’s a massive challenge for us,” Collingwood said.
“If we can come over here and do very well it will be very satisfying. Not many England sides have come over here and won a series. We are determined to do that,” Collingwood said.
“It was very disappointing to lose 5-0 at home. We’ve got an opportunity now to come out here and hopefully reverse that. We are a totally different side, a different set-up altogether. That’s an exciting thing for us, a young side not a lot of experience to come out in this kind of conditions. It is going to be a challenge,” Collingwood stated.
“We got a set of players who have the belief to come over here and win. You come to places like Sri Lanka or Australia you are beaten before you go out in the park. Certainly the mental side is a massive thing and all our players in the dressing room in the squad believe that we can win out here.
“What you’ve got to do is adapt to the conditions and the wickets you come upon. The team that adapts quickly wins. You make sure when you practice in the nets you practice all kinds of skills that you come up in all kind of conditions and make sure you apply those skills at the right time,” he said.
Speaking further Collingwood said: “We obviously realise Sri Lanka is a very good side. When you come to Sri Lanka it is obviously hot and conditions do favour the home side. That’s the most exciting thing. When you play professional cricket you want to challenge yourself. It is certainly one of the biggest challenges you can come up against.”
“If we can go home after a good series here it would be very satisfying. There is still a lot of confidence in the side. We believe we’ve got the skills to adapt to these conditions, to adapt to the heat we got the fitness. Only time will tell.”
Collingwood was of the opinion that left-arm spinner Monty Panesar will play a crucial in England’s bid to win the series.
“Monty will do very well out here. He is learning a lot and he has been pretty good for us so far. The conditions out here will suit him. He’s realised that a change of pace could be a good thing,” said Collingwood. “Certainly the work he has done so far in the nets has been fantastic and he could he a handful out here. Monty is a fantastic bowler as similar as New Zealand’s Daniel Vettori whose change of pace had a great impact on the 20-20 game. Vettori used that as his main weapon.”
Collingwood admitted that he would miss all-rounder Andrew Flintoff. “He is two players in one.”
He was also confident that young fast bowler Chris Broad would bounce back after the harsh treatment he received at the hands of India’s Yuvraj Singh who hit him for six sixes in one over in the World Twenty20 match.
“He is someone who learns a lot in the nets, always asking questions. Certainly he is not happy to have gone for six sixes in an over. He will learn from that experience,” he said. -(ST)
UK bank sponsors ODI series
One of UK’s biggest banks Bradford & Bingley will sponsor the five-match one-day international cricket series between Sri Lanka and England starting at the Rangiri Dambulla Stadium tomorrow. The company is also the proud sponsor of Yorkshire County Cricket Club. The series ends on October 13 in Colombo.
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