There have been some unsatisfactory comments made in the aftermath of Sri Lanka's fantastic victory in the First Test Match in Galle. Much of the post-match analysis was biased and far too one-sided. The English commentators and writers should look closely at the video and they will clearly see that both sides were the victims of bad luck.
We were particularly annoyed though by unfounded accusations, such as those made by Michael Henderson in the Daily Telegraph. He made some rash statements: "Sri Lanka lost their dignity", "How can any side take pleasure from a victory that poisons the game" and "Sri Lanka's conduct in this match was nothing less than a deliberate and concerted assault on the fabric of the game". Great prose maybe, but not balanced journalism.
To label the Sri Lankan players as cheats is simply scandalous. The Sri Lankan team does not, has not, and will not cynically orchestrate appeals to pressurise the umpires. Yes, mistakes are sometimes made. You have to understand that in conditions such as those in Galle, where top-class spinners bowl on a dusty wicket, there will always be plenty of bat/pad and lbw enquiries and, for both the umpires and the players, it is often too difficult to know for sure what is out or not.
Henderson also said that Kumar Sangakkara has admitted claiming a catch that bounced short and duly apologised to Michael Atherton after the game. This is simply not true. Kumar Sangakkara believed he took the catch cleanly at the time and the inconclusive television replays have not changed that opinion since. He certainly hasn't apologised to Atherton.
The Sri Lankans are vocal and there is nothing wrong in that. In fact, I would be disappointed if they weren't, as they needed to keep themselves going for three strenuous days in the field. Test cricket is a tough game and I was proud of their efforts.
These derogatory comments will just make us even more determined to win the series, by the largest margin possible. The players have gained confidence from Galle and will not be relaxing like they did last year, when South Africa levelled the series in Kandy, in a game that we should have won.
Going back to the First Test Match, there is little doubt that winning the toss was a big bonus, on a dry pitch that was always going to deteriorate on a daily basis. The fact that the pitch deteriorated even quicker than expected gave us an even greater advantage.
Having gained the advantage of winning the toss, you then have to take full advantage of it and we did that with a disciplined batting performance by our normally free-scoring batsmen. It was slow going and we only scored 221 on the first day. But, by losing only two wickets we ensured that we would dominate the match from thereon in.
To their credit the English team kept their discipline too, despite the high temperatures and not taking regular wickets. The bowlers maintained a tight line and length and were well backed up by some excellent ground fielding.
We finally declared on 470 for five, more because of time than anything else, but the wickets did not come easily. Marcus Trescothick played with a maturity that belied his tender years and richly deserved his century. I find it hard to believe that he has found it difficult to play spin in the past. He was positive in his defence and quick to punish any loose bowling. It is certainly rare to see Muralitharan driven through extra cover like he was. Michael Atherton was as solid as ever, scoring 33 and 44 in nearly seven hours of batting. England's openers seem to hold one of the keys to their success.
England's run rate, however, was below two runs per over so it didn't hurt us too much when we went through a session without taking a wicket. Thus, despite not taking wickets regularly, we were in a position to enforce the follow on the morning of the forth day. By the end of the day we had only taken two second innings wickets, but again the scoring rate was so slow that they were still over a hundred runs behind us when we started the last day.
I was really pleased by the extended commitment, concentration and fierce competitiveness of the Sri Lankan bowlers, close-in fielders and wicket-keeper, who had to endure three scorching days in the field.
It was first and foremost a great team performance, but there were some outstanding individual performances that deserve a special mention: Sanath Jayasuriya took eight wickets with his fizzing left arm spin and bowled important long spells throughout the three days, something that he is not used to; Chaminda Vaas, as he often does, claimed key wickets at crucial times, by bowling straight, full and at an ideal pace for the pitch; Marvan Attapattu and Aravinda de Silva showed their undisputed class with fantastic centuries, full of patience and determination; finally, Kumar Sanagakkara battled hard behind the stumps and showed us just how far he has come in the last 12 months.
The physiotherapist, Alex Kontouri, also played a key role in our victory by ensuring the Muttiah Muralitharan played the match. Murali was not a 100%, but he took seven wickets in the game and bowled approximately 100 overs. The fact that he played at all is testament to Alex's superb injury management skills. He worked untiringly on the injury from the day it was sustained in New Zealand and the value of his expertise was immeasurable.
The events of the First Test Match are now history and we have started focusing on the Kandy match. The team is upbeat, the confidence is fully restored, and we are determined not to make the same mistake as last year.
© CricInfo
| Teams | Sri Lanka. |
| Players/Umpires | Kumar Sangakkara, Mike Atherton, Muttiah Muralitharan, Aravinda De Silva, Chaminda Vaas, Sanath Jayasuriya, Marcus Trescothick. |
| Tours | England in Sri Lanka |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Results - Forthcoming Desktop Scoreboard |
|
|
|
||||||
| |||
|
| |||
| |||
| |||
| |||
| |||
| |||
|
