Archive for Sri Lanka
Players will be allowed to arrive late for tour of England
Posted by: | CommentsSri Lanka has performed a u-turn and will not ask players to return home early from the Indian Premier League to prepare for their tour of England. After talks between the Sri Lankan and Indian boards, the seven members of Sri Lanka’s Test squad currently participating in the IPL will now only have to make themselves available for the second warm-up match of the tour on May 19-22 against England Lions at Derby – as was the original plan.
Earlier, authorities had asked the players to return home by May 5, arguing the national team takes precedence over lucrative IPL contracts. The tour opener in England begins on May 14, and the first of three Tests starts on May 26 in Cardiff.
Captain Tilakaratne Dilshan, experienced batsmen Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene and spinner Suraj Randiv are among those playing in the IPL.
Fast bowler Lasith Malinga will not take part in the Test series in England, citing an injury, but officials questioned his claim and will ask him to return home immediately from the IPL for a rehabilitation program.
Till May 18, Sri Lanka players will play IPL
Posted by: | CommentsAfter a meeting with sports minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage, Sri Lanka Cricket has decided to allow its cricketers to play in the IPL till May 18,. The board hadearlier asked the players to return on May 5 in order to prepare for the tour of England, which begins with a practice match against Middlesex on May 14. However, they have now issued a release saying the players have only to arrive in time for the second warm-up game, against England Lions, starting May 19. The first Test is on May 26.
However, he denied that Sri Lanka were succumbing to pressure from the BCCI. He said the initial decision to call the players back early was taken by the new selection panel headed by Duleep Mendis in order to give the players time to prepare for the series, and it was not intended to spark any controversy.
SLC secretary Nishantha Ranatunga stated that the selectors would pick an additional three to four players to make up the XI for the tour opener against Middlesex , as seven of the 16 players selected for the Test tour are involved in the IPL,.
SLC had originally given the Sri Lanka players till May 20 to play in the IPL, and following their change in the date, the BCCI had contacted Sri Lanka’s board asking them to reconsider. The decision had sparked mixed reactions among the Sri Lanka players, with Muttiah Muralitharan criticising it, while new captain Tillakaratne Dilshan said he did not mind it since playing for the country came before playing the IPL.
Lasith Malinga has not been slected for the Tests, since he had told the board he was injured, but he has been asked to return to Sri Lanka to undergo a rehabilitation programme .Sri Lanka’s players will now miss only the last week of the IPL..
Malinga asked by the board to return from IPL
Posted by: | Comments“It looks a bit awkward when someone says he is injured and continues to play cricket,” Sri Lanka’s new chairman of selectors Duleep Mendis said. “That is the reason why we have decided to write to Malinga and ask him to return home and undergo a rehabilitation programme. Malinga has specifically mentioned in a letter that he is not available for Test matches right now because he has a nagging knee problem.
Sri Lanka Cricket will ask fast bowler Lasith Malinga to return from the IPL and undergo a rehabilitation programme after he made himself unavailable for the upcoming Test series in England. Malinga had stated that he is suffering from an injury, but continues to play for Mumbai Indians in the Twenty20 tournament. Malinga did not figure in the Sri Lanka squad of 16 players named for the three-Test series against England starting on May 26 in Cardiff.
Mendis said they would have to wait and see what Malinga’s response was before deciding on the next course of action.
Nishantha Ranatunga, the SLC secretary, also expressed concerns over Malinga’s absence from the Test team. “We are very much concerned about Malinga because he is an important product in the team,” Ranatunga said. “He should be up and running to play in all three formats of the game. In that sense getting him fit and ready to play at full strength is very important.”
Malinga has shown a reluctance to play Test cricket since he sustained a long-term knee injury more than two years ago. Since December 2007, he has played only two Tests – against India at home last year – and has confined himself to playing in limited overs and Twenty20 cricket, where he has been very successful. He has, however, not officially stated that he is unavailable to play Test cricket for Sri Lanka.
Stuart Law takes Sri Lanka reinsStuart Law takes Sri Lanka reins
Posted by: | CommentsStuart Law, Former Australia international will take charge of Sri Lanka during their summer tour of England.
The Queenslander, who has been assistant coach of the nation since 2009, has been promoted to head coach on an interim basis following the departure of compatriot Trevor Bayliss.
Fellow Australian Bayliss, who managed the team for four years, announced his decision to quit ahead of the 2011 World Cup.Law will be the new interim coach, a spokesman for Sri Lanka Cricket, the governing body of the sport, said.
From May 26 to July 9, Sri Lanka tour England for three Test matches and five one-day internationals.Following their World Cup final defeat to India in Mumbai There has been a major shake-up in the Sri Lanka hierarchy.
Captain Kumar Sangakkara and deputy Mahela Jayawardene have both stepped down from their roles to allow selectors to groom new leaders for the next World Cup in 2015.
Sangakkara Steps down
Posted by: | CommentsSri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara has stepped down from his post as one-day and Twenty20 skipper with immediate effect. The veteran wicketkeeper-batsman has announced his decision just three days after guiding Sri Lanka to the final of the 2011 World Cup.
Sangakkara, 33, has told the national selectors that he will quit as one-day and Twenty20 captain, but has offered to continue as Test captain on an interim basis if required.
“This was a decision I made prior to the World Cup. I will be 37 by the next World Cup and I cannot therefore be sure of my place in the team.
“It is better that Sri Lanka is led now by a player who will be at the peak of their career during that tournament.”
Team will miss Murali terribly Sangakkara
Posted by: | CommentsKumar Sangakkara was sad not being able to give Muttiah Muralitharan the perfect send-off in what was his final international appearance for Sri Lanka and admitted the team would miss him terribly. Sri Lanka were beaten by six wickets in the World Cup final by India in Mumbai and Murali, on one of his rare off days, went wicketless in eight overs and conceded 39 runs.
After winning the toss, posting 274 thanks to a superlative century from Mahela Jayawardene, Sri Lanka had done well. They were in command when Lasith Malinga dismissed India’s openers, Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar, early in the chase. But the Indian middle order stepped up with Gautam Gambhir and MS Dhoni reviving the innings with match-winning half-centuries.
Murali was dealt with easily by Gambhir and Dhoni, who hit him repeatedly to the extra-cover boundary. Murali had come into this game with a groin injury, and while it was considered a risk to play him, the game was just too big to leave him out. Sangakkara, however, said fitness didn’t affect Murali’s performance.
Murali had ended his Test career on a high, picking up a wicket with his final delivery to win Sri Lanka a game against India last year. And while that perfect ending eluded him this World Cup, Sangakkara summed up what he meant for Sri lanka.
Even in defeat, Sangakkara gracious
Posted by: | CommentsSri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara was full of praise for his players despite again falling short in a World Cup final.
Mahela Jayawardene’s 103 not out allowed Sri Lanka to post a score of 274-6 after opting to bat first against India in Mumbai.
But Gautam Gambhir (97) and Mahendra Singh Dhoni (91no) saw India to a six-wicket win with 10 balls to spare.
For Sri Lanka, who surprisingly axed Aantha Mendis among four changes to their starting XI from the side that beat New Zealand in the semi-final, it was a second consecutive World Cup final defeat – having gone down to Australia four years ago.
Nehra might miss the final world cup match
Posted by: | CommentsA question mark is put over Ashish Nehra’s selection for the final against Sri Lanka on Saturday as he has fractured the middle finger on his right hand. Ranjib Biswal, the Indian team manager, confirmed the development but said the team would only take a call on Friday about whether or not he could play. Nehra has a fractured finger, which was revealed from the scans taken this morning. But Gautam Gambhir, who went off the field during Pakistan’s innings in the semi-final having felt some pain and did not return, is expected to be fit for the final. Biswal said they would clarify the position on Gambhir tomorrow.
Nehra picked up the injury while attempting a catch against Pakistan. He was fielding at deep midwicket when he attempted to pick up a pull by Shahid Afridi against Yuvraj Singh. Nehra, not known so much for his deftness in the field, charged forward to pick the ball that was dying on him at the very last minute. Replays confirmed the ball had bounced in front of him but Nehra’s attempt drew applause from his team-mates as well as the fullhouse. Unfortunately, Nehra was grimacing in pain and immediately had his finger taped.
Since the injury was on his non-bowling hand, Nehra was able to get through three more overs in the match. However, there are worries he will not be able to field.
It was a bit of a surprise to see Nehra in the first XI during the semi-final, given that the man he replaced, R Ashwin, had been impressive in the two matches he had played in the tournament. Despite Nehra’s performance of 2 for 33, and Munaf Patel’s 2 for 40, India captain MS Dhoni said after the game that India had misjudged the pitch and should have played another spinner.
Ashwin may well have returned in place of either Nehra or Munaf for the final in any case, and will almost definitely be in the side if Nehra does not recover. The only other pace option India have is Sreesanth, who has been left on the sidelines since the first game of the tournament.
Nehra had missed the first two matches of the tournament with a sore back and was brought in for the group-stage game against Netherlands. Against South Africa in Nagpur, he went for 65 runs in 8.4 overs, 16 off which were scored in the last over of the game, consigning India to defeat. He was then left out for India’s next two games, before returning for the semi-final.
Sri Lanka will stay at second
Posted by: | CommentsComing into the tournament as one of the favourites, Sri Lanka have not quite convinced so far and but for their three most experienced players might have struggled again. Instead the finish was the kind of one-sided result that has epitomised Group A.
Sri Lanka’s old guard combined to ease to a 112-run victory over New Zealand at the Wankhede Stadium. Kumar Sangakkara made his first ODI century since June 2008, supported by a controversial 66 from Mahela Jayawardene to haul Sri Lanka up to 265 before Muttiah Muralitharan spun New Zealand to defeat with 4 for 25.
New Zealand, though, will rue their misfortune when Jayawardene was reprieved at a critical moment. Sri Lanka had lost both openers and were struggling to get on top of the New Zealand slow bowlers when, in the 24th over, Jayawardene chipped a return catch to Nathan McCullum.
It went low to McCullum’s right and the bowler dived full-length to scoop the ball centimetres off the turf. The batsman stood his ground and the decision was sent upstairs. Side-on replays seemed to clearly show McCullum’s fingers under the ball but a front-on shot, as it so often does, created doubt that the third umpire, Amiesh Saheba, ruled on. Before then Jayawardene had scrambled for 50 deliveries to make 26 but silkily added a further 40 at a run a ball and Sri Lanka never looked back.
A doosra took care of Kane Williamson for 5 before he landed the killer blow by spinning one back into Taylor’s pads. Despite a big stride and a review, Taylor was rightly given out for 33 and his team never looked like competing. Scott Styris chipped a return catch to Muralitharan, who belied his injury to spring up and snaffle the chance, and Nathan McCullum and James Franklin soon followed. Between them Mendis and Muralitharan took six wickets for 59 in 14 overs.
Unlike the frenzied excitement in Group B, the qualifiers in Group A are already settled. Sri Lanka are guaranteed to finish second whatever happens between Australia and Pakistan, which might well leave them in line for a contest against the World Cup mysterybox, England, in the quarter finals.
Sri Lanka into quarterfinals
Posted by: | CommentsThe result was a foregone conclusion once Sri Lanka scored 327 but there was a flutter of hope in the Zimbabwe camp when Brendan Taylor was at the forefront of the pursuit. He combined tenet and improvement during an aggressive half-century, taking advantage of a wayward Sri Lankan pace attack. The hosts gathered themselves, though, and struck twice at the other end after a century opening stand. Taylor finally departed for 80 in the 25th over, and with him ended Zimbabwe’s improbable chances.
When Elton Chigumbura chose to bowl in Pallekele, to avoid his spinners having to struggle with a dew-soaked ball, little did he think his team would fail to take a wicket for 44.3 overs. But Tillakaratne Dilshan and Upul Tharanga batted forever, notching up the first double-century opening partnership in World Cup history, and their hundreds set up Sri Lanka’s victory, officially securing their place in the quarter-finals.
The struggle of Zimbabwe’s batsmen was in contrast to the ease with which Dilshan and Tharanga had entertained a packed house. They started at top speed, taking 84 of the first 11 overs by playing a shot a minute, and then shifted to a lower gear, bleeding Zimbabwe steadily and so easily through the middle overs. There were regular bursts of acceleration later in the innings and a concerted push during the final ten overs. At no stage were they bothered and rarely has a bowling performance looked so powerless – Chris Mpofu’s shout after striking Tharanga’s pad with the first ball of the game was the only appeal against the openers. Tired shots, rather than incisive bowling, brought about the dismissal of Tharanga and then Dilshan, and more middle-order wickets fell as batsmen came, swung and pushed the total beyond 300.
Taylor’s dismissal was the definitive blow. On 80, he chipped a slower ball from Angelo Mathews straight to midwicket and the contest was over. Dilshan returned to torment Zimbabwe, picking up four batsmen – his finishing touches on a terrific game. And Murali, playing his final ODI in front of his home crowd, took the final wicket.
