Sri Lanka Cricket

Sri Lanka had not celebrated a home test win since Muttiah Muralitharan's retirement in July 2010. After a strong winning performance against England, they put an end to that streak.

Buoyed by strong performances from Mahela Jayawardene and spinner Rangana Herath, Sri Lanka went on to celebrate a 75-run victory over the British in Galle.

Herath finished with match figures of 12/171 and was instrumental in bowling out the tourists cheaply in the second innings—squashing any late hopes of revival.

England will look back on the match and seek to improve on the basics—which they know cost them the chance at winning this match.

They dropped Jayawardene four times as he went on to make a match-defining 180, and their bowlers failed to finish off the Sri Lankan tail who, to their credit, batted well and made valuable runs.

England are ranked as the world's top test team, but showed little signs of that as they slumped to another test defeat—this time to the sixth-ranked Sri Lanka.

Without Jonathon Trott and James Anderson, the score could have been a lot worse for England. They will desperately need to find depth by the beginning of the second test.

The second and final test begins on April 3rd in Colombo.

Read more articles by Dan here or follow him on Twitter: @dantalintyre

A masterful performance with bat and ball from Clint McKay carried Australia to a 16-run victory over Sri Lanka in the deciding third and final game of the Commonwealth Bank Series.

With Australia labouring at 151-6, the youngster put together a score of 28 from 32 balls to steady the ship. His eighth-wicket partnership with Brett Lee was long enough to calm the Sri Lankan attack and save the hosts' innings. They were eventually bowled out for 231.

Two nights ago, on the same ground, 271 proved to be too low a target, as Sri Lanka chased it down with 35 balls to spare. McKay made sure that they wouldn't find 231 quite as easy to reach, taking five wickets as the Aussies skittles them out for 215.

McKay was brilliant, but he was only one part of an Australian attack that had its best performance of the series. Brett Lee was expensive, but took three key wickets. Shane Watson, standing in as captain for the injured Michael Clarke, totally shut down the batsmen, allowing under two runs an over.

While the bowling they faced was good, the Sri Lankans will look back on the match and rue their lacklustre batting. Throughout the tournament, they have impressed with their aggressive approach at the crease. They had been on the offensive in almost every match they played, but were unusually casual in the most important game of the competition.

Sri Lanka got off to a decent start, but the wickets soon started to fall. No-one in the top five scored more than 30, and player of the series Tillakaratne Dilshan fell for just eight.

Upul Tharanga gave the visitors hope, putting together a solid 71. Ultimately, though, his innings was too passive. He ate up 122 deliveries in his innings, and his careful approach was indicative of the complacency of the Sri Lankan lineup as a whole.

Nuwan Kulasekara provided a late injection of aggression, finding the boundary twice in his short stay at the crease. The slow pace of his teammates perhaps forced him into a position where he had to make big shots, though, and when he timed one wrong, it was an easy catch for Lee.

Shane Watson was very impressive in his role as interim captain, mixing up his bowling well and keeping his opponents on the back foot for almost their entire innings. Clarke will likely miss Australia's ODI series in the West Indies, but Watson has proven he can substitute very well.

Perhaps the only slight negative for Australia was that their batsmen were relatively unimpressive. They were okay, though, and with Clint McKay dominant with the ball, okay was good enough on this occasion.

Sri Lanka have embarked on their two-month tour of England, with a new look team and a new captain in Tillekeratne Dilshan. This tour provides a tough start to the job, and he has begun well making the right choice in leaving the IPL midway to lead his team in the tour matches.

Sri Lanka are missing the services of the peerless Muralitharan and the enigmatic Malinga, and therefore the team is being written off in many corners of the media as one that can at best hope to draw the series on the strength of their batting.

In Paranavitana and Dilshan, Sri Lanka has openers it can depend on. Paranavitana, in his short career so far, has shown that he has a good technique and has an appetite for runs; he along with Dilshan have both shown good form in the tour matches with each of them scoring centuries and have what it takes to blunt what the English bowlers throw at them.

Followed by Kumar Sangakara, Mahela Jayawardene and Thilan Samaraweera, they have a middle order that has both the experience and the talent to be considered as good as any in world cricket. A lot will be expected from this middle order and they will have to deliver in this test series for Sri Lanka to beat the English.

Also the fact that neither of Sangakara or Jayawardene have any added responsibilities of captaincy, they should be able to express themselves and be free of any extra burden. They will be eager and raring to prove that they still belong and are the best batsman in the country. These two will need to handle the two best opposition bowlers Anderson and Swann. If they are able to play these two bowlers well and negate their danger, Sri Lanka can expect to see big runs from them.

Sri Lanka will be hoping that Dinesh Chandimal and Prasanna Jayawardene can both make meaning combinations down the order during the test series, as with the bowling attack at their disposal, they will need all the runs they can get on the board.

The bowling attack is clearly the team's weaker discipline. The Lankans will be missing the services of both Muralitharan and Malinga after both announced their retirements from test matches recently and will be hoping the rest of the team can step up to fill the big void left behind by them.

The attack will be spearheaded by Dilhara Fernando and as good a bowler as he is, he hasn’t proved he can lead a bowling attack. With 35 test matches under his belt, he is the most experienced bowler at the disposal of the new captain with the likes of Walegedara, Lakmal, Perera and Pradeep with the combined test match experience of eight matches as the backup options in the pace department.

Whatever strength in bowling Sri Lanka possess in bowling is in the form of spinners. In Randiv, Mendis and Herath they have three quality spinners, who might not be of Murali’s calibre but are still good enough to pose the Englad batsman plenty of difficult questions.

It doesn’t help that the series is being held at the start of the cricket summer when the pitches are at their freshest and quickest best. This works in the favour of the English as the Lankan spinners will find it harder to spin the ball in the cooler conditions and the pitches being fresher providing less turn and truer bounce.

All of Sri Lanka will be hoping the rain and clouds stay away for the duration of the series and that the sun bears down with all its might to provide precious little advantage to their bowlers as possible.

Unlike the majority of the media, I think Sri Lanka have a big chance of competing and beating England this series specially if the gods shine some bright light on the game.

After the World Cup and the IPL I am quite looking forward to some five-day test match cricket.

On Friday, Sri Lankan pace bowler Lasith Malinga announced his retirement from Test cricket effective immediately. This came on the back of some mild controversy where Malinga revealed he would not participate in the five-day game part of the upcoming tour of England due to injury, yet would continue playing in the lucrative IPL.

Known as "The Slinger" for his low, rangy bowling action, Malinga has been forced to retire due to a degenerative knee condition which hampers his fitness in the longest form of the game. He will continue to participate in international ODIs and T20 matches, an arena where he has proved most deadly in recent times, including a hat trick in the World Cup just gone.

The question I posit though is not a new issue—isn't Test cricket supposed to be the pinnacle of a player's career? Should one not give up the shorter formats first in favour of helping his nation achieve success on the larger stages? Australian captain Ricky Ponting certainly thinks so, given his recent retirement from T20s to prolong his Test career.

The problem is not unique to the Sri Lankan quickie, mind. England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff initially gave up Test cricket to enable participation in the shorter formats before injury forced him into leaving cricket as a whole. Rumours abound that teammate Kevin Pietersen has been thinking of doing just that, especially given his recent woeful form in the five-day game.

So why would a player chose to do this? The answer lies in the explosion of Twenty20 cricket. As Malinga has shown, his withdrawal from Tests allows him more playing time in the IPL which in turn means a lot more money for his services. It's not just India where a player can make big money playing either, with big wages being paid by English, Australian and New Zealand leagues as well.

Does a player have the right to chose financial gain over his country's success, though? From this journalist's opinion, no. If a player seeks riches over his nation, then he such be ostracized from International Cricket, full stop. 

As I've mentioned previously, Test cricket is the most prestigious form of the game and should be protected as such. Many players demonstrate their desperation to play at this level—look at Eoin Morgan and Imran Tahir, two players who forsook their home nations to play at the very top for England and South Africa respectively. Cricketers, like all international sportsmen, should respect the wishes of their countrymen, the fans. After all, Central Contracts aren't setting them up for a life of poverty.

Yes, I understand there are literally thousands upon thousands more on offer, but that's not to say having an international career kills those opportunities. Many players make a good sum with the IPL when the schedule allows it, and look at Shane Warne, he gave his best years to Australia and is still going strong in the IPL after retirement.

Back to the question I asked at the top, though; is Malinga's retirement justified? Yes. His time in Test cricket was always numbered down to the aforementioned action which takes a considerable strain on his body. He needs protecting, much like Australian Shaun Tait did, another bowler whose action took its toll.

However, he should be in rehab being constantly monitored by the Sri Lankan Cricket Board. They'll need him fit in England, and chasing riches in India should come second. 

That being said, I wish "The Slinger" all the best in his future career. At 27, it's a shame to lose such a talent in the longer format, and the sport will be weaker for the loss of his skill and charisma.

I know that cricket isn't big on this website, but I'd love to hear from you guys. What are your thoughts on the topic? Is allowing the IPL to have its own window in the ICC calender a solution? Are there any other cricket topics you'd like me to cover? Please let me know below!

Kumar Sangakara and his boys have been in Mumbai for the last few days.

They have found, among other things, a brown wicket. It was green last month, they say.

But they are fine with it, they understand.

However, let us not talk about useless things like the pitch and the wicket. There are more important things that are happening around the final game of this World Cup of Cricket away from the public eye, and very smartly hiding from the omnipresent news channel cameras.

Sangakara is angry. In fact, he is stark-raving mad. He is feeling insulted, to let you in on a secret.

There are several reasons why he is angry.

He has been in Mumbai for so many days, and nobody important has visited him. Yes, you read that right, nobody important has visited him. No calls even from the famous Mumbai underworld. Forget about the D company guys, not even a street corner goon has cared to intimidate him. Terrible.

He had flown into Mumbai expecting to be taken to a corner and being told this: Listen, you are good boys, you play good cricket, so do that. Hit your fours and sixes, take a few wickets, a few catches also if you want to. Let Murali also take some wickets as this is his last game, we are generous people. But you know, there is this small thing that has to happen: Give Sachin his 100th century, and let Dhoni take the cup.

But nothing of this sort has happened.

At least Pakistan were threatened, by a person no less than their own minister. But the Lankans have not even been suspected of fixing this match. Can there be anything worse than that? People must think that these Lankan boys are completely useless. The president of the country is coming all the way to see the match, and he has not even whispered to any one about the possibility of such deals. Shame.

And if that was not enough, there is this thing about Poonam Pandey. No, its not about her stripping, or saying that she will. Not a single Sri Lankan girl has said that she will do so if Lanka bring the cup home. So, is it that the girls back home aren't confident about us. Sanga is fuming. Despite appeals sent on video to every nook and corner of the country, not a single girl has come forward to do so.

Sanga is angry and fuming. Shahid Afridi has joined ranks with Sanga, and blamed his country's women for the loss. As per him, the boys felt humiliated, and Shoaib Akhtar took the ultimate step of retiring from the game.

They also asked BCCI to act against this girl. BCCI said that they control cricket, not girls who want to take their clothes. Point taken.

Meanwhile, Murali has decided to petition ICC. As he says, this is too much of a batsman's game. A batsman gets a runner, right? Why can't a bowler? Why can't a bowler be allowed to be carried on the shoulders of a runner to bowl? Why should the bowlers take this any more? They need runners too?

Nehra has come out in support of Murali. And so has Dhoni, in support of Nehra, of course. As Dhoni says, every time Nehra walks to the top of his run up, Dhoni is not sure if he will actually turn around and bowl. So, a runner for bowlers is a good idea, and he supports it. Also, a fielder for bowlers, except when the bowler is called Murali.

There is more news on Nehra. He is being pursued by several insurance companies. Not for policies, of course, as nobody wants to insure him. They want him as their brand ambassador. They want him to come on TV and say: Every ball is a risk, and every time I run in to bowl I run the risk of an injury. Anything can happen in life. Get insurance. And Nehra is still bargaining.

Now, enough about Mumbai. Let's go to the finals and hope that Sanga's anger doesn't harm India.

And just before I sign off, I must share this latest from Pakistan. Kamran Akmal has been given a lifetime contract to be Pakistan's wicketkeeper, and the Pakistan Board has ordered a bag for him so that he can collect every thing. Money you said? I don't know.

With the league matches done and dusted, after all the permutations and combinations have done their rounds, here's what the quarterfinal schedule looks like:

• Wednesday, March 23: Pakistan vs. West Indies at Dhaka, first quarterfinal.
• Thursday, March 24: India vs. Australia at Ahmedabad, second quarterfinal.
• Friday, March 25: New Zealand vs. South Africa at Dhaka, third quarterfinal.
• Saturday, March 26: Sri Lanka vs. England at Colombo (RPS), fourth quarterfinal.

Let's get down to a brief preview of the matches and my predictions.

Pakistan vs. West Indies

I've always said in my earlier articles that Pakistan is the dark horse of the tournament and one of my favorites to win.

When comparing the two sides, the West Indies seem to lack batting consistency and their bowling carries a little less sting than Pakistan's.

The Windies are still formidable, but will find themselves in over their heads against the passion and grit of the Pakistani team.

What's even more crucial is their mental make up: Pakistan is coming off a huge victory against Australia and the Windies are coming off a rather poor show against an ordinary Indian bowling attack.

I predict Pakistan will win.

Their batting has been "iffy," so to speak, but they make up in their bowling, fielding and sheer passion.

I think it will be enough to get them through this match.

India vs. Australia

The Indian bowling attack has been exposed for its mediocrity in recent weeks.

Having said that, the game against the West Indies is an indication that they might have found the right combination with Raina and Ashwin.

Another worrying factor is the Indian lower-middle order. They're working very hard at undoing the great start that the top and middle orders provide.

There is that lack of consistency, which will bite them if it continues.

As for Australia, the bump against Pakistan will have little or no effect on them.

I still think Australia is one of the contenders for the Cup—but against India, in India, their mettle is going to be tested.

I predict India will win.

My first instinct was to go with Australia and my first instincts are usually never wrong.

However, the more I think about it, I somehow picture Australia crumbling in this match.

Whether it's wishful thinking or just going by past performances by Australia in India, I think India will pull it off.

It won't be easy, but it's going to be a slobberknocker!

New Zealand vs. South Africa

New Zealand has done so well in their group and completely turned things around for themselves.

However, the real question is, can they continue to do it and overcome South Africa?

The South Africans have topped the group here; I think they're looking to really come hard and fast at the Kiwis.

The problems I see for NZ is their overall consistency.

If Ross Taylor fires and their bowling is kept reasonable, they should beat them.

South Africa are looking formidable as ever, peaking in all departments and must continue this trend if they're to go further.

I predict South Africa will win.

Again, New Zealand are good, but they may just not have enough to get through.

Sri Lanka vs. England

After the mauling that Sri Lanka gave the Kiwis, they're on a high and there's no doubt about it: Their bowling and batting has been excellent.

As for England, only they know how they got here.

Too many close calls and unconvincing wins. If they're to beat Sri Lanka, they need to really get into high gear, but I think they lack the focus to do that.

I predict Sri Lanka will win.

No doubt about it. There's really not much to say about England here anymore.

There you have it, folks. I see India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and South Africa in the semifinals.

Look funny?

Well, Cricket is a game where anything can happen!

I'd love to hear your thoughts and what your final four will look like.

The tour gets under way officially with a solitary T20I followed by five ODIs, and just five months ahead of the ICC World Cup, 2011, this is a short but important series for both teams.

Sri Lanka's squad for the limited overs series scheduled to happen later this month against Australia has been announced. The islanders start a five week long tour of Australia with a warm up fixture against Queensland on October 22.

Legendary spinner, Muttiah Muralitharan, has been selected for the tour.

Legends of Sri Lanka cricket, Chaminda Vaas & Sanath Jayasuriya, although available, and having expressed their interest to participate in the tour, have not been selected.

The selectors have picked Suraj Randiv, Jeevan Mendis & Muralitharan as their main spinners.

Interestingly, Ajantha Mendis & Rangana Herath have also been dropped, but stay on a list of standby players as a replacements in case of injury.

Dhammika Prasad & Dilhara Fernando join Nuwan Kulasekara & Lasith Malinga as the main pace bowling options, while Angelo Mathews & Thisara Perera play as all rounders who bowl medium pace.

Dinesh Chandimal, 20, has been selected instead of the experienced Thilan Samaraweera.

The squad: Kumar Sangakkara (C), Mahela Jayawardana, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Upul Tharanga, Chamara Silva, Jeevan Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Chamara Kapugedera, Thisara Perera, Lasith Malinga, Nuwan Kulasekera, Dilhara Fernanado, Muttiah Muralitharan, Suraj Randiv, Dhammika Prasad, Dinesh Chandimal,

Standby: Rangana Hearth, Ajantha Mendis, Thilina Kandamby, Thilina Thushara, F. Maharoof.

Fixtures:

Oct 22 v Queensland, Brisbane (d/n, 50 overs)
Play starts at 0530 BST

Oct 24 v New South Wales, Sydney (d/n, 50 overs)
Play starts at 0420 BST

Oct 27 v New South Wales, Sydney (d/n, 20 overs)
Play starts at 0900 BST

Oct 31 Twenty20 international, Perth (d/n)
Play starts at 0935 GMT

Nov 03 1st ODI, Melbourne (d/n)
Play starts at 0320 GMT

Nov 05 2nd ODI, Sydney (d/n)
Play starts at 0320 GMT

Nov 07 3rd ODI, Brisbane (d/n)
Play starts at 0320 GMT

The International Cricket Council today announced the short-list of five cricketers for the LG People's Choice Award category at the LG ICC Awards that will take place in Bengaluru, India on 6 October.

The short-list includes Mike Hussey of Australia, Mahela Jayawardena of Sri Lanka, England captain Andrew Strauss, Sachin Tendulkar of India and AB de Villiers of South Africa.

This award, which has been included for the first time, will be chosen by cricket fans around the world who now have a chance to vote for their favourite player until 10 September on: www.lgpeopleschoice.com.

The cricketers have been selected on the basis of some really innovative parameters, in sync with the values that embody brand LG, by a five-man ICC selection panel. This panel was chaired by former West Indies captain and current chairman of the ICC Cricket Committee Clive Lloyd and includes former international players Angus Fraser of England, Matthew Hayden of Australia, Ravi Shastri of India and Zimbabwe's Duncan Fletcher.

These include innovation, dynamism, strength in decision-making, performing well under pressure and executing a plan to distinction. The winner of this award should demonstrate an ability to engage spectators and should also embody the game's unique spirit, both on and off the field.

ICC Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat said: "Our great sport owes a lot to its dedicated and passionate cricket fans around the world for their non-stop support and commitment. This LG People's Choice Award is a perfect tribute to those avid and dedicated fans.

"I urge all cricket lovers, irrespective of where they are living, to take active part in this online opportunity and make your vote count for your favourite cricketer."

The LG ICC Awards ceremony is now in its seventh year and this year it will be held in Bengaluru, India. Previous ceremonies were held in London (2004), Sydney (2005), Mumbai (2006), Johannesburg (2007 and 2009) and Dubai (2008).

The fallout of the condemnatory reaction to the no ball incident has been swift in its dénouement.

Suraj Randiv has been suspended for the next game and fined all of his match fee.

Tillekaratne Dilshan has forfeited his entire match fee as well.

Kumara Sangakarra gets off with just a slap on the wrist - not even a perfunctory rap on the knuckles.

The Sri Lankan cricket board was quick to react and ordered an enquiry into the unsavory affair.

The Sri Lankan board comes out smelling like roses; it has been commended by the ICC for its speedy resolution of the controversy. The Spirit Of The Game has been enforced.

The same cannot be said of the other protagonists in L’affaire No Ball.

Kumar Sangakarra still has some questions to answer. As captain, he ought to have corrected Dilshan and prevented Randiv from acting on his shouted instructions.

People do strange things in the heat of the moment; more so youngsters. It is the skipper’s duty to stand up and be counted as a man among boys.

Much as skippers would like to be considered to be ‘just one of the lads’, the truth of the matter is they are not. They are leaders, mentors, and have to lead by example.

Kumara Sangakarra has much to answer for.

Sehwag, despite being the wronged party, has not been a personification of poise. His outburst post the match was unbecoming, though he sung a different tune at the press conference. He then took some uncharacteristic digs at the Sri Lankans on his Twitter account.

His tweeted ramblings include gems such as “If we play with energy poise and unselfishness, we will be playing the game the right way.",”Worry n fear just make u frazzled n unsettled. And the truth is that win or lose , life still goes on.”, “Right effort has to do with unselfishness and working to benefit the team.”. And somewhat mysteriously “It is not necessary to share everything between true friends. But it is necessary that what U share must be true".

A studied silence would have spoken volumes.

Sports should be about will and grace. Cricketers show the former in abundance; for most of them reaching the pinnacle has been about hard work, determination and a burning desire to succeed. It’s when it comes to exhibiting the latter quality that they are found wanting.

Media facing and media fending skills are not the same as displaying equanimity and  character.Our cricketers seem glib and hard-nosed.

Perhaps, its time for our cricketing authorities to look at enhancing our cricketer’s life skills; to take the hard knocks with sporting grace and kind courtesy. Perhaps, having Anil Kumble advise the young guns in the Indian side is not such a bad idea after all. Perhaps, such incidents will no longer blight the game and expose the venality of our sporting heroes.

Perhaps.

Generally when there are conflicts between players on the field, authorities—match officials, national Boards—step in to sort things out. Often this leads to a prolonging of the controversy, but that’s inevitable if players and teams can’t find an amicable solutions between themselves, or if it’s not appropriate for them to do so.

Now we have a case where an external authority—namely the Sri Lankan Cricket Board (SLC)—is stepping in to prolong a controversy that the players had, seemingly, amicably sorted out in short time.

Let’s first recap what happened. India, chasing Sri Lanka’s 170, was 166/4 at the start of the 35th over. Virender Sehwag, facing, was on 99. Suraj Randiv was the bowler. The first ball stayed low, and slipped past the bat and ‘keeper for four byes. Scores level, the batsman still on 99. The next two deliveries were played to point, with no run.

To the fourth delivery, Sehwag danced down the pitch and smashed the ball over the long-off boundary. However, the umpire had called no-ball and, since this happened before the six was hit, the game was deemed over and the batsman walked-off on 99*.

TV replays showed this to be, perhaps, one of the biggest no-balls in history; the bowler’s back foot was nearly in front of the crease! Commentators immediately raised the possibility that it was deliberate, as did Sehwag in his post-match interview. Later, Randiv apologized to Sehwag, so admitting his guilt.

Yet it’s clear that this act was not planned well in advance. Otherwise Randiv would’ve overstepped deliberately (or bowled a wide) on the second or third ball of the over. It seems it occurred to Randiv (or some players) as an idea during the course of the over. However, the fact that the previous two balls weren’t no-balls doesn’t make a deliberate no-ball any less deliberate.

The way the Sri Lankans have responded to the incident has been unparalleled. It’s not for no reason that they’re widely considered one of the sides that best exemplifies the spirit of cricket. In his post-match press conference, Sangakkara was firm and sincere. He didn’t say it was deliberate but made a firm commitment to “find out” and to “make sure things like that don’t happen again”.

No doubt the captain and players had a word soon after and, without wasting time, Suraj Randiv went to Virender Sehwag’s room to apologize. I can see many other teams pursuing the strategy of external denial even if internally they decide to change their behaviour or avoid such a thing happening again.

However, the matter didn’t end there. In addition to Randiv’s apology, SLC secretary Nishantha Ranatunga called the Indian team manager, Ranjib Biswal, to also apologize. That seemed like a nice touch.

Yet, the matter still didn’t end. Ranatunga has also asked the team manager, Anura Tennekoon, to investigate the incident and submit a report.

Clearly, all of this shows just how much the Sri Lankans value the image of a fair-spirited cricketing nation. Cynics may argue it reflects just how much they want to keep India and the BCCI happy, but I doubt that in this instance. Biswal himself said that the incident occurred in the heat of the moment and that it was time to move on. India’s certainly not calling for anything more.

One wonders whether the additional investigation is necessary. The issue was quickly sorted-out between the players. Both teams get along very well, and they were unlikely to let this spoil things. Sehwag himself said so in so many words.

Not much new can come out of this SLC-ordered probe, except to learn whether other players were involved in coming up with the idea of bowling a deliberate no-ball or whether it was conceived by Randiv alone. Sure, this news may be interesting to the media, but what value will it serve? Already it’s clear that the Sri Lankan team regrets what happened. Nor is India (or the ICC) calling for more.

It’s time to move on.