Dav Whatmore: The turning point was the second innings
Dav Whatmore - 27 August 2001
|
Dav Whatmore National Coach
|
For the third home series in succession it's 1-1 after the first two Tests,
when it could so easily have been 2-0 to Sri Lanka. No time for regrets,
though, as we have a chance to win the series once and for all in the final
Test in Colombo.
The turning point in Kandy was undoubtedly the third morning. We had started
the day well placed, on 55 for one with a lead of 94, but our grip on the
game was loosened, as we lost four wickets for 72 runs in the morning
session. Then, in the afternoon, Venkatesh Prasad finished off the job
started by Zaheer Khan in the morning.
It's hard to put the finger on what exactly went wrong. India did bowl well.
They bowled a consistent line and length and extracted surprising movement
from the wicket, which put our batsmen under considerable pressure. The
wickets were falling, but the runs weren't flowing and that is always going
to lead to strife. Even so, individual batsman didn't play with the
responsibility that was demanded. It was almost as if they expected the
others to do the job.
There were other important moments earlier in the game too. On the first
day, when we lost two wickets just before lunch, to throw away an excellent
mornings work. Then, on the second day, when we let Harbhajan Singh smack 42
quick runs and significantly reduce their first innings deficit. These
little moments contributed, but it was the second innings batting that lost
us the game.
Muttiah Muralitharan did his best to save us with that fantastic innings,
just when we needed it most. He has always had good hand-eye coordination,
but he used his brains too, selecting which deliveries to hit and cleverly
farming the strike, so that Ruchira (Perera) was not overly exposed. He was
also paid the biggest compliment that anyone has ever been paid to him as a
batsman by Sourav Ganguly, who opted to post all his fielders on the
boundary. It's a real shame that we weren't unable to pull off a win for him
after his heroics.
We always wanted to post a higher target than 264. The pitch had held
together well and was much easier to bat on the fourth day than when we had
played England and South Africa. Nevertheless, we felt that the game would
be close and we expected it to go right down to the wire.
We were unlucky. Both on the third evening when Chaminda (Vaas) was swinging
the ball around and could so easily have nipped out one or two. Then, on the
fourth morning, Muttiah Muralitharan was not properly rewarded for the skill
he displayed. You can only feel sorry for the poor guy. During his last five
Tests, played against England in March and India now, he can rightfully
claimed to have taken 15 more wickets than have been recorded.
Fortune aside, Dravid batted exceptionally. He held India together and was
both confident and positive. He also ran well between the wickets. He is the
one player that stands out from that team, as being really special. We have
to take his wicket early at the Sinhalese Sports Club.
In the aftermath of defeat it is important to not make rash conclusions.
Wait for the emotions to blow over and then analyse the situation coolly.
The fast bowlers did not bowl at their best on the last day, but you cannot
be too harsh on them. Apart from Chaminda (Vaas), they have only played a
handful of Tests and need greater experience.
The new look formation with a greater emphasis on fast bowlers is
undoubtedly the way forward for Sri Lanka, but it is going to take time for
the philosophy to work consistently. Individual players, and the team in
general, need to become more accustomed to the system. We have to persevere.
Yes, we did lose, but not because of the fast bowlers - the game turned in
our second innings. We now have to make sure that we don't make the same
mistakes again.
© CricInfo