“The danger of players who play all formats of cricket is that they tend to bring the white ball version of cricket to the red ball game”
By Sa’adi Thawfeeq
Sri Lanka showed signs of regaining confidence in Test cricket under head coach Gary Kirsten during the recent two-Test series against India. Facing the series without openers Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis through injury, and then losing senior batter Dinesh Chandimal to injury after the first innings of the opening Test, Sri Lanka produced determined performances rather than collapsing as they might have in the past.
One feature of the series was the lower-order resistance. The tail batted with resolve, supporting recognized batsmen and refusing to let the opposition dictate terms.
“If you take the lower order batters like Lahiru Kumara, he batted 150 balls in this Test match. I would say to the guys — you are not here as a batter or a bowler in the team, you are a player and you have to bat,” Kirsten said after the final Test at the SSC.
“We had our bowlers practice batting a lot. I thought it was going to be a tough ask today, but that partnership in the first session between Sonal Dinusha and Keshara Nuwantha set it up for us. To be honest, I didn’t know that Kesh could bat that well and for that long. He batted well, had sound technique, played the short ball and spin effectively. Very encouraging. Coming in like a new player and batting at No. 8, he batted like a champion. He showed that he is not only a spinner with potential but he can bat as well.”
Nuwantha added 46 off 150 balls, helping Dinusha and him put on 112 for the seventh wicket.
Sri Lanka began the fifth and final day with four second-innings wickets in hand and a lead of 16 runs. Dinusha was the only established batsman left; the rest were tail-enders. They batted through nearly the entire day, facing 81.2 overs from the Indian bowlers and losing three wickets, which denied India a win.
“I was really impressed with some of the young batters who have shown their mettle in Test match cricket. Sonal Dinusha, in his fifth Test, and Pasindu Sooriybandara on debut, they took the opportunity under pressure and produced performances. That’s a real positive,” Kirsten said.
For Dinusha, the series was a personal success: scores of 100, 84, 103 and 133 not out. He became one of the few Sri Lankans, alongside Aravinda de Silva and Kumar Sangakkara, to score three hundreds in a two-Test series.
“It’s never easy batting at six when your team is under pressure. What encouraged me when I watched him in the West Indies is that he thrives in tough situations. First time I watched him bat properly was in the first innings in the West Indies. He came in at seven when we were 110‑5 and he put on a century with the captain. Then in the second match he got 92. I like the way he plays Test cricket. He thinks about it, plays to his strengths and is a smart cricketer. He understands what the bowlers are trying to do and uses his skills to negate that. This innings today and yesterday, saving the game for his country after following on, will be remembered as a major effort,” Kirsten said.
Kirsten identified wicket-taking as an area needing work. “Not winning Test matches is a concern. We need to work out where we can get 20 wickets. That is a work in progress. In this series there was no Kusal Mendis, Pathum Nissanka and Dinesh Chandimal, but three inexperienced youngsters came in and performed. I am excited about that. I thought Keshara showed what he can do as an off-spinner, and Asitha Fernando did a great job, but we have work to do in getting 20 wickets. Asitha showed his class in the second Test in the West Indies and has been one of our top performers in this series. He needs more assistance. We will spend time on how we take 20 wickets, not just relying on spin but on seam as well.”
“On the batting side I have to get the batsmen thinking like Test match batsmen; we are losing too many wickets at the wrong times. Still, the team showed grit under pressure. The danger of players who play all formats is that they bring the white-ball approach into red-ball cricket. We want players to play Test match innings. Test match cricket is a form that requires adapting over five days, not applying one approach in difficult conditions.”
Kirsten praised the pitches prepared for the series at Galle and the SSC. “I am a big fan of preparing wickets that help seamers as well as spinners. That’s how you develop a team to play in all conditions. I was impressed with the two wickets prepared for the Test series; they were hard-working Test wickets, not immediate-result wickets. We want our batters to be able to bat, spinners to work hard and seamers to be in the game. In the second innings at Galle our seamers took seven of the ten wickets. That is encouraging; we want to develop that further,” he said.
