- Chief selector declines to comment
- No end in sight for team’s woes
Sri Lanka’s current wretched form in T20Is was laid bare in no uncertain terms as they were blown off the park by a rampant England team, in the first T20I at Utilita Bowl, Southampton to trail 1-0 in the three-match series on Tuesday (15).
Placed ninth in the ICC Men’s T20I Team Rankings, Charith Asalanka’s team clearly resembled a deer in the headlights, as they were outplayed in all facets of the game while suffering a 13th loss on the bounce in the format to their hosts.
Sri Lanka had in fact badly lost both of their tour practice matches to England Lions in the lead up to the bilateral series, and no one in their wildest of dreams would have fancied the tourists to turn up trumps in the series opener, against an inform England white-ball side.
As it proved the match turned out to be a lop-sided contest from ball one to the end, as Sri Lanka resembling something of a ragtag team simply had no clue as to what they were up against at the Hampshire home venue.
When asked whether the T20 team’s current form was a concern, Chair of the National Selection Committee Kapila Wijegunawardene declined to air his views in public and for that matter during the middle of an ongoing bilateral series.
He maintained that as a policy he would comment only at the appropriate forum and hence refused to be quoted over the team’s listless performance.
Critics have questioned as to what prompted Asalanka to insert the home team on what proved to be a belter of a wicket with a ‘near perfect’ England in the eyes of their captain Harry Brook, posting a massive 254/4 complimented by the latter’s own unbeaten 114.
It beggars’ belief as to what the Sri Lanka captain would have seen but most others did not, that could have enabled his bowlers to roll over an experienced England batting line up possessing the likes of Jos Butler and Harry Brook and Jordan Cox.
As it panned out faced with a humongous chase, Sri Lanka were never in the hunt and were promptly shot out for 135 to lose by a thumping 119-runs, and are now forced to face the music in the final two games of the series at Cardiff on Thursday (17) and at Manchester on Saturday (19).
The team’s overall performance has again proved as to how tough it would be for Sri Lanka to arrest their ongoing woes in the sport’s shortest format, and Asalanka at the post-match news conference lamented not being able to pull off ‘our plans and execution’.
Another area of concern for the visitors missing injured regular skipper Kusal Mendis, would be how a batting line up consisting of Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Lahiru Udara, Asalanka, Kamindu Mendis and Dasun Shanaka, struggled to take the cue from Brook and Butler during their chase.
Amidst the batting shambles all-rounder Dunith Wellalage ultimately emerged as their top-scorer lower down the order with 33, but the pressure will surely mount for them heading into the next two fixtures.
As things stand Sri Lanka will need to sort out their combinations fast and the seniors to start delivering or face further ignominy down the road, against a cracking England team, who following the triumph at the Rose Bowl have become second in the T20 World Rankings.
Furthermore, the record books also point to a yet another bilateral series reverse for the island-nation away from home, with their last meaningful series triumph being against Pakistan when they swept to a 3-0 victory in the 2019-20 season.