New faces
Can't tell a Kulusakera from a Paranavitana? You're probably not on your own when it comes to struggling to name members of Sri Lanka's largely unheralded Test cricket team, but you'll have every chance of figuring it out during the next month.
In case you want a little head-start before the first Test in Hobart on Friday, here's a very light introduction to some of the Sri Lankans likely to give Australia a headache this summer.
The last time Sri Lanka toured these shores for a Test series, things didn’t quite go according to plan.
The visitors were soundly beaten in both legs of a two-match series that saw the likes of Brett Lee and Mitchell Johnson run riot with the leather while Michael Hussey and Phil Jaques each helped themselves to twin centuries for Australia. For Sri Lanka, veteran superstars Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara were also amongst the runs on that 2007 tour and will return to Hobart this week having both nailed centuries at the Bellerive ground on their previous Test visit. While much will depend on their ability to do a similar job this time around, there’s plenty more to like about the make-up of a Sri Lankan touring party that will be coming Downunder this summer with high hopes of putting a scare through an Australian camp in the midst of a post-Ponting overhaul.
Perhaps for the first time, Sri Lanka will boast an outfit with more Test experience than Australia and the visitors look particularly strong in the batting department, especially given their knowledge of Australian conditions after last summer’s limited overs tour. If the likes of Jayawardene and Sangakkara find assistance from the lesser known supporting cast of the Sri Lankan top order, the series will almost certainly prove a stern test for an injury-ravaged Australian pace brigade.
Tall and elegant at the crease, Tharanga Paranavitana looks likely to open alongside hard-hitting Dilshan Tillikeratne, the veteran excitement machine more than capable of dominating any international attack on his day. In some ways the Sri Lankan opening pair mirrors Australia’s combination of Ed Cowan and David Warner and whichever duo performs best may well find themselves on the winning side of the ledger next month.
Plenty of attention will also be paid to the performance of young star Dinesh Chandimal, the 23-year-old still taking his first steps in Test cricket, but already boasting a reputation as the brightest prospect in the Sri Lankan batting ranks. Chandimal is yet to post a Test century, but is only four Tests into what promises to be a long and distinguished career given his impeccable technique and impressive temperament. If able to find his feet in Australian conditions, Chandimal looms as a real danger man for the home side and there’s every chance he’ll announce his arrival on the international scene with a big score or two this summer.
Much as Shane Watson looms as Australia’s great all-round hope, Angelo Mathews can look forward to a heavy workload for Sri Lanka if he can maintain fitness throughout the three-Test series. Already a force in the one-day arena, Mathews is beginning to forge a reputation as a reliable long-form contributor with a batting average above 40 runs per innings across his 28-Test career. The 25-year-old was amongst the runs against New Zealand last month and looms as a key figure in the middle order and as a change bowler capable of taking vital wickets.
Best known as a factory for tricky spinners, Sri Lankan cricket has also produced a number of dangerous seamers through the Sri Lankan Pace Academy during the last decade. Unlike on previous tours, Sri Lanka will be without the attacking verve of Lasith Malinga or the deadly accuracy of Chaminda Vaas and must rely on a relatively inexperienced pace brigade to rattle the Australian batsmen. Chanaka Welegedara and Shaminda Eranga were made to toil on a flat Manuka Oval wicket against the Chairman’s XI in their warm-up match last week and it would seem likely that Nuwan Kulusakera will return to the side for the Test series after a solid showing in the recent series against New Zealand. Hobart and Melbourne will provide the most receptive conditions for seam bowling and the Sri Lankans will need to make early inroads if they’re to stay in the series until the culminating Test in Sydney, a venue that will better suit their phalanx of spinners.
Having been on the international fringes since the late 1990s, Rangan Herath has emerged as one of the most difficult prospects in Test cricket during recent years, racking up an impressive 174 wickets in 42 appearances for his country. He took 20 wickets in two Tests against New Zealand in November, but may find the going slightly tougher in Australia than in spin-friendly home conditions.
Dealing with Herath’s left-arm variety will be a tough task for Australia’s batsmen and just one of the many contests that will shape what promises to be an entertaining conclusion to an already memorable summer of Test cricket.
