The Hindu : Sport : Sri Lankans are sitting pretty

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Jun 05, 2006

Sport

Sport

Sri Lankans are sitting pretty

Ted Corbett

NOTTINGHAM: Grafting innings from Upul Tharanga, Kumar Sangakkara and the captain Mahele Jayawardene allowed Sri Lanka to scent victory at Trent Bridge on Sundayas the third Test grew to a climax. England bowled economically but by tea with Sri Lanka 219 for five and 221 ahead the Murali factor was uppermost in England minds.

Andrew Flintoff, the England captain, had run out of ideas to the extent that he had to ask Kevin Pietersen to bowl his off spin. Such a big man dropping slow spinners down the pitch; like a Bulgarian weightlifter in a knitting competition. He is not the new Tony Greig and Tillekaratne Dilshan filched 12 from his two overs. But the change may have worked in one way. Jayawardene lost concentration in the next over, edged a catch behind off Liam Plunkett and smashed a stump down in his frustration.

I saw them at breakfast, so relaxed you might imagine that a day's shopping with the wife was their big event of the day, so cheerful you wanted to bring the England players along and tell them that is how they should be and yet . . . clearly thinking that this was their moment. Fortyseven in front of England, the men who regained the Ashes just a year ago, with nine wickets standing. This will be our day: I bet that cry rang round the dressing room.

By lunch Sri Lanka was 125 for two, losing Upul Tharanga three overs before lunch immediately after he had hit a high six into the Radcliffe Road End stand off Monty Panesar. The ball had to be changed because it has lost some skin on the rough brickwork and after two more deliveries and only four short of his fifty Tharanga was caught with Sri Lanka leading by 102. At lunch Sri Lanka was 125 for two with Sangakkara on 56 and Jayawardene already moving nicely.

Tough and resilient

Sangakkara had been the backbone of this innings. He, of all the Sri Lankan batsmen, is capable of backs-to-the-wall innings. He is tough and resilient and, as a lawyer always ready with the flip answer. I doubt if any sledging has ever upset him; repartee is part of his stock in trade. Throughout the morning he had kept his head down and his fifty, the first of the match, came off 109 balls. You would not want anyone better in a low-scoring match.

Soon after lunch he was out, caught by Marcus Trescothick at slip, off Flintoff who was, once again, making the major effort himself. He wheeled away from the wicket as if he had been shot because, I guess, he knew that like Pietersen he should have gone on to make a century. Sri Lanka sent in Sanath Jayasuriya at No.5 but, whatever it had in mind, its plan failed. He hit a four immediately but at the other end, tried a sweep against Panesar and was rapped on the pads.

Umpire Darrell Hair raised his finger and Jayasuriya gave him a long stare. His journey back to the pavilion was slow as he wondered if his late trip to join the party had been necessary. He must also have been aware of the old cricket saying "One usually means two" and that only six ball split the two dismissals.

Now it all depended on Jayawardene to get the score to 200 and so give Muttiah Muralitharan a chance to weave spells in the England batsmen's minds. Sri Lanka probably needed 250 to win but this is a strange match and no result is out of the question.

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