As the massive crowd poured out of the Pallekele Cricket Stadium on Sunday night, a man, noticeably inebriated, spotted an unclaimed spot on the footwalk. He laid down with the contentment of someone who had just discovered a five-star hotel. However, the local police did not approve of his choice of lodging and promptly moved him along. Just a few meters away, an impromptu band of boys transformed the streets into their concert stage, singing, dancing, and creating rhythmic beats on a local percussion instrument. Another car, filled with boys, passed by, joining in the musical revelry and enhancing the street symphony with their voices.
All these cheerful souls had just witnessed their beloved Sri Lankan team lose to the visiting Indian side in a match that ended up being less competitive than anticipated. Yet, it seemed the fans had mustered the courage to treat cricket as just a game, or perhaps they simply refused to let it ruin their last Sunday of July.
In less than 30 hours since the Sri Lankan men’s team embarked on their post-World Cup T20 revival, the urgency to take some “big decisions” has become palpable. The primary cause behind this urgency? The recurring failures of the middle-order, which have become a glaring issue for the team.
In two consecutive games, impressive starts by the top order have been squandered within a few overs due to the middle order’s inability to maintain momentum. In the first game, the hosts were cruising at 140 for 1 in 14 overs. However, needing 76 runs in the remaining six overs on a flat track, they set up a nail-biting climax, only to let Axar Patel and Ravi Bishnoi break their momentum and make Riyan Parag’s part-time spin look insurmountable. Even on a batting-friendly track with little spin assistance, it could have been considered a one-off collapse had it not repeated the very next day.
Batting first on Sunday, Sri Lanka quickly lost Kusal Mendis, but Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Perera took charge. Perera especially kept up the aggression, even after Nissanka’s promising start ended. Making a comeback to the national team, Perera was in splendid form, dominating both Siraj’s pace and Bishnoi’s spin with a blend of power and skill that has toppled some of the best attacks in the past.
At 130 for 2 after 15 overs, Sri Lanka seemed set for a final flourish. However, they collapsed again to spin after Hardik Pandya dismissed both set batters. Dasun Shanaka chopped one from Ravi Bishnoi onto his stumps, and Wanindu Hasaranga was bowled by a googly off successive deliveries. By the end of the innings, the middle order’s implosion resulted in a modest total of 161 for 9.
Bishnoi, barely able to conceal his amusement, speculated on whether India had discovered Sri Lanka’s weakness in handling spin. “They play spin really well, but I don’t know what’s happening with them,” he said. “They are collapsing in the middle overs. They were known as a good spin-batting team, but I don’t know, something has gone wrong.”
Sri Lanka’s assistant coach, Thilina Kandamby, tried to provide a more practical explanation. “On these wickets, in the first 10 overs when the ball is hard, it’s much easier to bat,” he explained.
. “After 12 overs, the ball gets softer. It’s not an excuse, but our middle-order hasn’t been reliable for the last three or four games. There are struggles, so we need solutions.”
The middle-order’s struggles have persisted since the T20 World Cup last month. Despite a full season of the Lanka Premier League and dropping veterans like Angelo Mathews and Dhananjaya de Silva, the desired revival remains elusive. The sought-after “solution” and the “tough decisions” they hope to take now focus attention on their current captain, Charith Asalanka, former captain Dasun Shanaka, and their star T20 player Wanindu Hasaranga.
Making changes in methods or personnel appears to be a big challenge, but stranger decisions have been made in cricket. Kandamby emphasized that the challenge stems from situational awareness rather than skills. “Our players are not incapable of playing spin, and we’ve shown that. But in those situations, the shots you have to play and the decisions you make – those are the things we have to be more conscientious about.”
The middle-order conundrum, particularly in roles at No. 5, 6, and 7, isn’t a new problem. It has been a long-standing issue, often negating the good work done by the top order. Kandamby, who had personally experienced the pressure in those middle-order positions during his career, highlighted the challenges. “I was also a middle-order batter, and I know what the pressure is like in those positions. I’d also wanted to go up the order, but the batters in the top order made it impossible. Experienced players should ideally bat lower down, but they need some security even if they don’t succeed initially.”
“We need to push experienced players into those positions, maybe even in the LPL. But you can’t force anyone. Local coaches in the LPL also have a say, so we need to try it there.”
Dismissing the skill-deficit theory, Kandamby argued that Sri Lanka’s six-hitting stats are on par with other teams. The issue lies more in handling situations and sticking around in tough scenarios.
On a day when the Sri Lankan women’s team celebrated its greatest triumph and their most prominent cricketer watched with teary-eyed pride, the men’s team, less than 100 kilometers away, faced uncertainty and tough decisions. The road ahead might be fraught, but so was the impromptu street concert’s fading notes. Amid the uncertainty and helplessness enveloping the team, a sense of camaraderie and optimism endured on the streets, promising that the fans were willing to wait for better days to come.