England v Sri Lanka: The head, the tail and the whole damn thing

Sri Lanka’s loss against the mighty Brits in the first ENG v SL Test at Headingley highlighted some pretty gaping holes in the Lankan unit. While the coach Graham Ford would have certainly pointed it out to his players, from an analyzing standpoint, it is something the Lankans would want to get rid of. And fast.

The last time the Sri Lankans made their way out to the Eldorado of England, they displayed some terrific cricket. Test cricket is a Test they said, and the way the Lankan blokes went about their business of playing some good and old-fashioned Test cricket was simply astounding. Kumar Sangakkara, a stalwart and a legend of the game was the one to stand out on the tour. Adding centuries to his bulging list and accumulating runs were his trade. And he was pretty damn good at what he did.

2014 was a historic year in Sri Lankan cricket. They had clinched their first piece of silverware in a long time. When Lasith Malinga lifted the World T20 title in Bangladesh, the likes of Arjuna Ranatunga and Aravinda de Silva was already pouring over squads to send to England. Among the names was Kumar Sangakkara, a stalwart of the game and the key component to Sri Lankan chances in England.

Also read – Kusal Perera replaces Dhammika Prasad in the Sri Lanka Test squad

James Anderson was in overdrive at The Oval. This wasn’t the Ashes. Yet, it was surprising to see Anderson tearing through the wind. He was desperate. So was his skipper Alastair Cook. They hadn’t seen batting like this before. Sangakkara was proving to be a nightmare for the England bowlers. Of course, there were contributions from the others. However, they were played around the irresistible Sanga.

In 2016, as well documented, the tables had turned. The English were licking their wounds from their loss in the World T20 final while a vanquished Sri Lanka made their way to England. There were question marks on the side that was sent to England and the personnel that had gone.

The tour, however, began very well for Angelo Mathews. Despite a wonderfully compiled century from Jonny Bairstow, the Lankans bowled out the home team for 298. However, they were about to receive some ‘chin music’ from the best there is. James Anderson is perhaps the best exponent of swing bowling at the moment. Some unplayable shots, the overcast conditions and a few horrific shots from the Lankan batsmen saw Anderson and co skittle them out for 91. The second innings and it was pretty much the same story. Anderson completed yet another 10-wicket haul as the Lankans crumbled to an innings defeat.

In England, at around the same time, Manchester United had just clinched their 12th FA Cup title in their history. All those in the red of Manchester at the Wembley Stadium were at the top of their voice. Everyone except for one Mr. Paul Scholes. The Manchester United Legend had always advocated that his former club should play in a much more expansive manner. Apart from all the criticisms that came out of Scholes’ mouth, one phrase he mentioned made sense. ‘You need to get the ball to your best players.’

That phrase directly applies to the Sri Lankan team at the moment. Back in 2014, it was Sangakkara who had carried the team through his heroics with the bat. However, that simply didn’t happen against the Brits this time around. Who were their best players? Did their best players have what it took to face the great Jimmy Anderson?

Dinesh Chandimal, Lahiru Thirimanne, and Angelo Mathews are Lanka’s best players at the moment. But the way they performed in Headingley was simply horrific. It was a canvas that had a horror scene painted all over it.

Angelo Mathews bowled rather aimlessly. It seemed as though he was bowling just to wind up the overs. The batsmen, including Steven Finn, looked at ease when they faced him. On the other hand, Dasun Shanaka, the debutante was bowling with purpose. In spite of the fact that it was his debut, Shanaka made a genuine effort to make life difficult for the batsmen. The result: he picked up 3 wickets in his opening spell.

While Jimmy Anderson flawlessly bowled his heart out, the two senior batsmen of the Lankan side Thirimanne and Chandimal were overridden quite seamlessly. Anderson didn’t even break a sweat as he helped himself to 10 wickets in the match. These two batsmen had the job of not only getting a big score but also leading the way for the other batsmen in the team. Although Thirimanne did indeed show some resistance, it was when they had lost 9 wickets.

Dinesh Chandimal looked completely at sea against the England bowlers. Although a smile ran across his face from time to time, it simply reinforced the fact that he was completely bamboozled. In a nutshell, Chandimal and Thirimanne are viewed as the direct replacements for the now retired Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara. Although it is a tough ask, it is one that certainly has to manifest into a responsibility.

Finally, most would hate to lose Sri Lanka as a team from the Test cricket arena. Conversely put, the situation with the West Indies cricket at the moment must never happen to Sri Lanka. Perhaps Thisara Perera is just a preview to the exodus that is being anticipated by a few. In spite of the farfetched theory that the Lankans are in line to follow in the footsteps of the Windies cricketers, a minuscule possibility of the same remains.