By Sreelata S. Yellamrazu
Sri Lanka is perhaps the one team besides New Zealand who seemed to have a hang of the tournament. Dark horses perhaps, but decidedly Sri Lanka was showing the mature side if Pakistan could curb its temperamental ways. India was thrown in with England as two of the worst teams of the tournaments; harsh perhaps but there was too much deviation to predict. Sri Lanka though flopped at their worst moment. The result: it was not a pretty sight!
Australia were riding on a prayer and their final league match against Sri Lanka to make it to the final four. Men of cricketing acumen concurred: Sri Lanka deserved it more than Australia. Australia, one felt, never really tuned in to the tournament and paid a face losing price for their debacle against a zealous Zimbabwean squad. Sri Lanka were always brimming with confidence and seemed they could put no foot wrong.
Sri Lanka were on a high with Sanath Jayasuriya, the thirty-seven year old veteran of the bombastic bat, roaring like his hey days of the limited overs World Cup of 1996. It would then have to be said that Sri Lanka’s fall from grace had much to do with the luck of the charismatic all-rounder. Jaysuriya was taken to the cleaners by Pakistan and his lbw against Australia waylaid Sri Lanka beyond recovery point.
The hurdles grew and so did Sri Lanka’s woes. Against Australia, Sri Lanka failed to simply wind down. Their gung-ho attitude of the earlier games failed to sublimate as the Australian bowlers proved too hot to handle. But at least a couple of dismissals were soft, suggesting a greater subdued application at the crease could have seen better times for Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka were blown away by the speed of the game and by a man people are unfairly likening to Glen McGrath. Stuart Clark would like his own identity and certainly after the way he systematically decimated Sri Lanka’s pride and performance, he is not a man to take lightly.
One had to blink twice to see a side five down with virtually nothing on board. Even the minnows have not fallen as badly. Coming from Sri Lanka, it was a shocker. From being the favourites to put it past the world champions who failed to overcome Pakistan in their previous game, Sri Lanka put up a limp performance that every one would like to forget in a hurry.
Undoubtedly Sri Lanka’s worse day of the tournament and unfortunately at a stage of no comebacks. As well as Sri Lanka have performed, they simply did not have enough in the bank to overcome this horrendous performance. For the tournament, the timing of this clash could not have been any better. Not only was this a match between the so called favoruites and the so called fallen champions, it was also a knock out match that should have ideally brought out the best of both teams and made this a teething tussle.
But Sri Lanka put up their toothless side on show; the much hyped clash appeared never to have arrived. Now the much shell shocked Sri Lanka will find themselves on the flight back, their campaign to the inaugural Twenty20 cut short cruelly by their own inability at application as also, a resurgent performance from the slighted world champions.
Australia should consider themselves to have survived the vagaries of their shock and awe performances. Now they will in all likelihood without the resources of their skipper Ricky Ponting who was left shamefaced after their first loss to Zimbabwe. But Australia are finding their feet in this tournament and on their day, can blow away the opposition like they did to Sri Lanka. Australia will hope to capture that essence in the semi-final in order to reach the final pinnacle.
Australia have put their defeats past them and with this close to laying their hands on a second World Cup trophy in a year, will now go for crowning glory. Australia will be the team to beat, although that is not how all cricket fans would have liked it. Australia are the overwhelming favourites to be the least favourite side to win the tournament, if the fans were concerned. The green and gold have had it all too much for the fans to settle for more of the same. The tournament perhaps deserves a brand new champion. But this time it would be Sri Lanka who stands in Australia’s way!
No comments:
Post a Comment