Vimukthi Adithya
So then the Sri Lankan World cup squad will be named on 18th April but before that let me write something.
Inclusion of Dimuth? Battle for the Captaincy.
It’s is told that Dimuth K will be made the Captain of the World cup team. Seriously De Mel seriously! Yes, Dimuth is the best test Batsmen we have in the country but does that mean that he can play ODI too?, well only the time will tell.
Dimuth Last played an ODI match 4 years ago, that was in the 2015 world cup. Batting at number 5 he scored 14 off 21 against New Zealand, scored 23 off 32 batting at number 4 against Afghanistan, couldn’t bat against Bangladesh and England and then was sent back home after getting injured. Dimuth might be the first player to play his last ODI in a world cup and the next in another world cup after 4 years. De Mel missed a trick here, if he was considering Dimuth for the World cup he could have simply asked him to stay back in South Africa and play the White ball series there rather than selecting him upon performances of the Provincial ODI tournament. It is believed that Dimuth is the only player who can get this team together and be a good leader. Then there is Lasith Malinga, the current Captain who is demanding the selectors to make him the Captain for the WC else he will retire, this was not said directly but from what he told that’s what most of us understood. ‘I will make my decision after the World cup squad is announced’.
The openers
The next big concern is who is going be our openers. In the provincial tournament we tried out 8 openers and here are their performances;
Avishka – 54, 5, 27*, DNBTharanga – 12, 1, 15*, DNBDickewella – 6, 19, 2, 4Gunathilaka – 3, 7, 0, 15Weerakkody – 56, 41, 17, 0Thirimanne – 10, 82, 6, 115Sadeera – 15, 4, 12, 70Dimuth – 35, 44, 86, 0
When the regular 4 openers failed it was Thirimanne who performed well and made a strong case to be included In the World cup squad. Yes, Avishka was unlucky because two matches were washed out due to the rain and he couldn’t bat. So, it is Thirimanne and Dimuth to open then?
Thirimanne to open?
Thiri last played an ODI in 2017 December, but he has been very consistent each time he opened the batting for Sri Lanka. 3 out of his 4 centuries came out while opening the batting and the other one at 1 down. 102 off 110 against Pakistan in the 2014 Asia cup, 101 off 108 against Pakistan in the 2014 Asia Cup Finals, 139 off 143 against England in the 2015 World cup. All these 3 centuries came in while opening the batting and came in with a strike rate of over 90. Lahiru Rumesh Thirimanne to open the batting then? Thiri has opened the innings in 19 matches has scored 701 runs at an average of 40.1 with 3 centuries and 2 fifties with a strike rate of 76.5. Also in the 2015 World cup Thirimanne played 7 matches scored 302 runs with an average of 50.33, strike rate of 85 and that too by opening the batting. And De Mel no more Dickwella please for the squad, don’t include him in the squad and ruin his holiday, he needs to do more adventures, travel and update on Instagram. After all he is a human and needs to enjoy his life. While Thirimanne uploads pics working out in a gym just after Avurudu our man is somewhere in a hill and a waterfall. The commitment level is shown eh? We need Maturity and discipline to play any sport. Hi hip Hooray!
Bhanuka R or Oshada? Does Chandimal play?
Rumors were spread saying that 11 players are already confirmed for the World cup. They are; Dimuth K, KJP, KM, Chandimal, Mathews, DDS, TP, Udana, Akila, Lakmal, Malinga. The rest 4 are supposed to be an opener which I believe will be Thirimanne, a middle order batsmen – may be Bhanuka or Oshada. A spinner – hope it will be Jeewan and a fast bowler – may be Rajitha or Chameera. The concern here is who is going to bat at number 3 or 4. Which players from Oshada and Bhanuka will be included in the squad? Who from that included batsmen and Chandimal deserves to be in the team? This is a real issue that the selectors will have to sort soon.
Yes, its true Bhanuka impressed in the Provincial tournament, no doubts about the talents and he is someone who should have been in the squad from long time ago after he played the under 19 World cup. But including him straight in to a major tournament like the World cup out of nowhere can back fire on us. Imagine that top three; Thiri, Dimuth and Bhanuka. One playing after 4 years, the other after 2 and the other is on debut. More problems eh? Oshada showed us that is a more stable and a matured player and indeed he impressed in the few matches he got. More headaches if you are a selector. Number 4 to 11 is pretty much easy to guess. It’s just the top three. Yes, I know that Dimuth might be in the team and have a good chance of being the Captain. But if is not then I will not have in my playing 11.
My playing 11 would be
ThiriDDSOshada (Oshada might not be in the 15, but Bhanuka might be in)KMKJPMathewsTPJeewan UdanaMalingaLakmal
Surprised because why no Akila – Yes, I will go with the leggie and Akila’s job could easily be done by DDS. 2 front-line seamers and two fast bowling all-rounder with a leg spinner and a more than handy off spinner will give the team more depth in batting. Using DDS at lower will not help since we have Mathews to play at the middle order. DDIS is someone who can play the waiting game and accelerate when needed. Number 7, 8, 9 is all about power and finishing the game. My other 4 reserve players would be Dimuth, Akila, Chandimal, Rajitha