• Introspection the need of the hour 

Sri Lanka T20 skipper Dasun Shanaka in a controversial assessment of his team’s now failed campaign at the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, took an uncharacteristic swipe at the public during the post-match press conference following their 61-run loss to New Zealand in Colombo on Wednesday (25). 

As if putting his foot in his mouth the captain who hardly made an impact with either the bat or ball for his country, insisted that too much external negativity surrounding his players had contributed in no small measure for the island-nation’s elimination from the knockout phase of the event.

Shanaka needs to devote time for some real introspection here instead of running off at the mouth by maintaining that negativity engulfing the team was a root cause for their dismal outings across this edition of the World Cup.

He has spoken of his team’s struggle to remain positive through this particular World Cup campaign and noted that negativity which has piled up around the team had played a part in their ouster from the Super 8 phase.

The captain of the Sri Lanka T20 team first and foremost needs to comprehend that virulent criticism from the public stems from their failure to perform consistently.

He needs to fathom that whenever the side delivers on the global stage the fans have always stuck around the players showering them with glowing praise.

Wasn’t that the case when Sri Lanka beat Australia to eliminate the former title-holders from the competition a few weeks ago.

It is acceptable for all and sundry that winning and losing is all part and parcel of this game and we need not reiterate it akin to a mantra to the captain.

The fans too are versed on that front. But, what Shanaka seems to ignore rather conveniently is the team’s now well-entrenched habit of throwing away games from a winning position.

Such tactics leaves room for negativity and criticism by the spectators in no small measure, but his argument that the Government should intervene to protect future generations of players from severe negativity does not hold water.

The skipper who has hardly inspired his men to turn around their flagging fortunes in the format, is rather vague when calling for Government intervention, but how about turning the compass towards those at the helm of his employers Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) for starters.

It has to be questioned as to what sort of intervention could be made by the Government to halt the swirling negativity around the team, and it could presumably be through a blanket ban on fans from airing any criticism on social media platforms.

Whether this is practical on the ground is left to be seen even if the Government has any notions of resorting to such drastic action.

It could also invite FR petitions and lawsuits from being filed in Apex Courts for infringing on the citizens right to air views as it is enshrined in the Articles of the Constitution as well.  

The team has been facing significant public flak in the run up to this global gathering, having experienced largely abject results in white-ball cricket since the middle of 2025.

However, consecutive reversals against Zimbabwe, England and New Zealand precipitated their exit from the ongoing tournament, with a fluke 8-wicket victory only masking the underlying cracks within the squad and the coaching staff in general.

Shanaka had also remarked that they had misread the pitches of the World Cup. But social media users vented their anger by stating in no uncertain terms that they too for their part collectively misread the players, after being lulled into supporting them on the back of their sensational win over the Aussies.

He had also observed that his request for more batting-friendly strips at this World Cup had also fallen on deaf ears, but aren’t the conditions the same for both teams in such events or even in bilateral contests.

This is nothing but trying to deflect blame on their terrible exit on the state of the surfaces given or on their inability to field a fully fit squad due to injuries suffered by key players as Wanindu Hasaranga, Matheesha Pathirana and Eshan Malinga.

One thing is certain for Shanaka and the team. If they really intend to overcome the negativity encompassing his team currently, then they will need to string together some impressive winning performances in this version of the game particularly against much stronger opposition. Whether that could be achieved in a jiffy is entirely another question.