UMPIRE Rudi Koertzen apologised for the howler of a decision that dashed Sri Lanka's slender hopes of a miraculous victory, but it did not change the fact that another touring side had perished at the hands of an Australian team hell-bent on improvement for India's arrival next month.
In the aftermath of the hosts' 96-run win at Bellerive Oval, Kumar Sangakkara gracefully accepted Koertzen's apology, placing his hand on the shoulder of the South African as the teams left the field. Sangakkara's superb innings of 192 was cut short when a Stuart Clark bouncer reared up and hit him on the shoulder, deflected into his helmet and lobbed into the hands of Ricky Ponting.
The Australians appealed and Koertzen raised his finger, denying Sangakkara his third double century in as many matches and ending his 74-run partnership with tailender Lasith Malinga. At that stage, Sri Lanka still needed 143 runs to win - but Sangakkara was hitting the ball sweetly, the Australian bowlers were straying and Malinga was providing plucky support.
"Kumar's innings was fantastic, one of the best I've seen," Mahela Jayawardene said. "The plan was for him to bat through the day and the other guys rotate around him. Unfortunately, the other guys couldn't do it. I was very disappointed with the way he got out. He was very upset about it, but that's how the game goes.
"I don't want to talk a lot about the decision… Rudi came and said sorry to him. But that's about it. Kumar is fine with it. He was disappointed at that moment, but when you sit back after half-an-hour, you think it's a mistake made by him. And that's it."
While Ponting never doubted his bowlers would claim the seven wickets needed for victory yesterday, his new-look team overcame its first real challenge.
In his second match as Australia's preferred opener, Phil Jaques built on his even hundred in Brisbane with knocks of 150 and 68, and Johnson claimed match figures of 4-145 with his ability to swing the ball at pace. Ponting said the clean sweep, built on an innings-and-40-run victory in Brisbane, had not come easily - even though it looked that way.
"A lot of touring teams don't get off to a great start in Australia, and that's not just to do with the conditions - it's also about how we get ourselves prepared for the start of the summer," Ponting said.
"We have got a new group of guys to focus on and a new environment around the changerooms … We have started that ball in motion and now it is up to us to keep working."
"We all reacted on the two noises we heard at the time," Ponting said. "It sounded as though it was either glove or bat and up into his helmet. Things happen really quickly on the field, especially when there's a bouncer like that. I obviously caught the catch and appealed. Kumar batted beautifully today. That innings, the way he struck the ball, from about 120 onwards, was some of the best hitting you will ever see."
The Australian captain also criticised umpires Koertzen and Aleem Dar for referring a disputed, low catch on the first day of the Test. He has given up in his quest to strike an agreement with opposing captains to accept the fielder's word in such situations, and believes the available footage is never conclusive.
"It has to rest with the on-field umpires now," Ponting said. "That one the other day, the umpires on the ground should have made the decision because they weren't unsighted."
Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene was last night coming to terms with his country's 0-2 series defeat, having begun the final day of the second Test with Sangakkara and Sanath Jayasuriya at the crease and Sri Lanka needing to bat for three sessions - or make 260 runs.
Those hopes faded when Jayasuriya fell to Brett Lee early in proceedings and Chamara Silva and Prasanna Jayawardene were captured by Mitchell Johnson in successive balls.
Still, Sangakkara and Malinga fought, and Sangakkara's blissful touch was demonstrated with back-foot glide through the covers to bring up 150.
No comments:
Post a Comment