Sri Lanka will go into the encounter against England as the overwhelming favorites. They are playing fantastic cricket at the moment, and that is putting it mildly. Every single member of the side looks focused. They seem reluctant, in fact hardly interested, in resting on their laurels. It appears that ‘taking it easy’ is a phrase they haven’t heard of. They don’t seem to operate to a fixed strategy. They have defended pretty well so far, but I cannot imagine them finding it very difficult to rise to the challenge of chasing a target. They are playing as well as New Zealand, South Africa and of course Australia. It is more than likely that these four sides will make it to the semifinals.
England have been bothered by injuries, and things have almost got to a stage wherein one leading player is unavailable if the other is available. This doesn’t augur well for the balance of the side. That they struggled to beat Ireland the other day will also be at the back of the players’ minds. However, it won’t be a cakewalk for the Sri Lankans. Not that Mahela Jayawardene and his team will expect it to be one.
It is unfortunate that Brian Lara, whose side is all but out of it, has criticized the schedule of the tournament. He ought to have remembered that the format was the same for everybody else. Professional cricketers cannot and should not complain about such matters. In any case, they were not playing everyday, were they? He and his players have figured in Test matches, which go on for five days at a stretch. To blame the schedule for the fast bowlers’ exhaustion is way off the mark. Most of the bowlers in the West Indian team are relatively new. It’s a young team, and the guys shouldn’t have had any problems playing a competition as big as the World Cup, and that too at home. The fact is that they are virtually out of it because they were not good enough. It’s a highly talented side, but I don’t think they had it in them to win the World Cup.
But the West Indian supporters were at least fortunate to see their side qualify for the second stage, which isn’t something you can say about fans in Pakistan and India. It is time for the players of our countries to take a cue from the Sri Lankans. Those running the game in Pakistan and India also need to adopt a tougher posture. One-day cricket today is dominated by the two Fs: fitness and fielding. It is hence necessary to think seriously about doing away with players who might be excellent batsmen or bowlers, but poor fielders.
Sanath Jayasuriya’s remarkable hundred against the West Indies prompted many people to compliment him for ‘defying age.’ But ‘age’ is something that shouldn’t really come into the equation, if the player concerned is fit. There cannot possibly be a better gift that a captain can receive, than having under him a senior and seasoned player who is supremely fit. Jayasuriya’s attitude and approach toward his game mirrors that of his teammates. They field well, bowl sharply and run between the wickets quite brilliantly. They know that singles constitute the lifeblood of batting in ODIs. The Sri Lankan public is fortunate to have such a side.
I can imagine Indian and Pakistani cricket-lovers being envious of their Sri Lankan counterparts. People are still very angry and hurt. They have every right to criticize the players. But what I cannot comprehend is fans posing a threat to the families and houses of the players. That is just not on. The players did fail, but their close relatives have had absolutely noting to do with it. What people don’t seem to realize is that we might soon find ourselves in a situation wherein no parent will encourage his/her child to become a cricketer, for fear of such a backlash.
For God’s sake, let’s exercise some restraint. Let’s not discourage our fledgling cricketing talent.
