Is Sri Lanka the next West Indies?

[amit]

Sangakkara & Jayawardene retiring early and playing T20 leagues. Too many retirements in recent years and their core of the late 1990s and early 2000s team all gone now

Left with only Mathews & Chandimal as the only 2 decent batsmen. No good youngsters coming through

Expect Sri Lanka to decline even further. With teams like Bangladesh improving & Afghanistan also coming up, expect Sri Lanka to be the 5th best team in Asia & become the whipping boys. Also expecting Sri Lanka to slip below 9 in rankings within 2 years

 

[ahmedwaqas92]

Yar what is with these "Team A is the new Windies" threads these days

People should just give it a rest and enjoy cricket

 

[Pete Rose]

Sri Lanka did reasonably well as can be expected vs new Zealand especially in the second test. West indies is basically playing like a team of afridis for the last decade or so.

 

[anuk]

No. There is plenty of interest around and school cricket is still going strong. Lack of talent is a different matter.

 

[GoUgandaCranes]

No.

Highly talented players in Sri Lanka.

Chandimal, Mathews, Malinga & to a certain degree Herath (at least for home tests)

Those who have shown ability to stand up

Sriwardana, Prasad, Chameera & Pradeep.

That is like 8 good players in a team. Their under-19 frame work is showing good results and the first class structure is working as well.

The issues aren't in the playing 11 - it is their board that isn't doing them any favors. I cannot understand how they continue to make losses as it seems to me that they are always playing unlike us. Maybe being a lower economic power is affecting them.

But please, stop with this thread - it has been made more than once.

 

[uberkoen]

What the hell? No, Sri Lanka is not the new West Indies. South Africa is not the new West Indies.

West Indies is the new West Indies and that's it.

 

[UpInTheAir]

We need cricket back.. Very dumb threads been popping up lately.

Sent from pone

 

[Chrish]

fair shout..

 

[Space Cat]

They are more like NZ was a few years ago. A weak side with a lot of younger players but they will bounce back.

 

[Markhor]

Firstly, people need to understand the sheer incompetence and chaos of West Indies administration and how bad their situation is. Caricom even recommended the WICB be disbanded.

West Indies domestic system is woeful in quality, talent pool is drying up, some cricket clubs are barely staying afloat and there's little commercial interest with their FC competition not attracting sponsorship. Sri Lanka on the other hand has seen administrative improvements. Andrew Fernando from Cricinfo mentioned work has begun on indoor net facilities in three international stadiums, an ACC centre of excellence has been set up in Dharamsala and there's been a domestic overhaul ordered so at least Sri Lanka have that going for them.

As far as on the field is concerned, SL's problem is that they keep losing matches from winnable positions, but at least they're competitive unlike the abject surrenders we see from West Indies. No good young players ? Siriwardene looks a very exciting prospect. Chameera is raw but has potential and I'm surprised Roshan Silva hasn't been called up yet as he's got an impressive FC record.

Its true they are going through a transitional phase post-Sanga/Mahela and their batting fragility has been exposed, their technique against the short ball the other day was atrocious. Plus they need to do more to keep their bowlers fit. But its too early to tell whether these recent results are indicative of any long-term decline.

 

[Amjid Javed]

SL are better then the W.I they are competative most of time and are still winnning test matches, W.I are just continual cannon fodder in test matches.

 

[zabalestmsm]

I concur... SL is only about Mathews currently... Chandimal is only good in Tests... Their bowling is not impressive at all currently.. And no upcoming good players as well, as far as I have seen...

 

[Prince of Pakistan]

People are not being realistic here.

Sri Lanka have relied on Sangakkara and Mathews in the the last 2-3 years. There hasn't been even one batsman to take up the mantle. Sangakkara knew this and yet retired which is why every Lankan fan was surprised.

I hope the U-19 world cup next year proves to be fruitful for the Lankans because they do need some new batsmen. The only new guy performing, Siriwardene, is already 28+ something. I don't know where Tharanga and Thirimanne have disappeared though.

Yes SL cricket isn't dead, but they do need a few stimulants to prosper again.

 

[rhony]

As someone mentioned Siriwardana looks a very good player in the making. Chameera needs to get his lengths right and needs to swing the ball. He is still young and capable. If he doesn't do this soon, he will be another Dilhara with just pace and nothing else.

The biggest problem in SL team is Thirimanne. He's been terrible for 3 or 4 series and this is affecting their team. Dammika is an excellent bowler and its unfortunate that he's injured.

 

[Thivagar]

No. There is plenty of interest around and school cricket is still going strong. Lack of talent is a different matter.

First Class sucks, school cricket can only develop a player to a certain level.

 

[Thivagar]

No.

Highly talented players in Sri Lanka.

Chandimal, Mathews, Malinga & to a certain degree Herath (at least for home tests)

Those who have shown ability to stand up

Sriwardana, Prasad, Chameera & Pradeep.

That is like 8 good players in a team. Their under-19 frame work is showing good results and the first class structure is working as well.

The issues aren't in the playing 11 - it is their board that isn't doing them any favors. I cannot understand how they continue to make losses as it seems to me that they are always playing unlike us. Maybe being a lower economic power is affecting them.

But please, stop with this thread - it has been made more than once.

Naa they recovered from debts awhile ago. They are actually selecting the youngsters, its just that they aren't good as they were in FC. Almost all of them lack confidence. The team isn't good and it won't be good for a while. There is no "the next big XXXXX" in FC anymore.

 

[Gabbar Singh]

Their test side have lost Sangakkara, Mahela and Dilshan (and prior to that Samaraweera) all in a short period. Those 4 scored over 35,000 test runs between them. And they will soon lose Herath their number 3 test wicket taker of all time.

They are left with a batting unit with very little experience and once Herath goes they will have a bowling unit with no player who has even taken 70 or 80 wickets at that level.

It's going to take them a few years to come out of this all.

 

[GoUgandaCranes]

Naa they recovered from debts awhile ago. They are actually selecting the youngsters, its just that they aren't good as they were in FC. Almost all of them lack confidence. The team isn't good and it won't be good for a while. There is no "the next big XXXXX" in FC anymore.

I still think, they will have a few lean months before going back to their usual self.

If every country started going the WI way, only India, Australia and England will be left and of course the IPL will be played over 9 months with double headers both side of Diwali

 

[anuk]

First Class sucks, school cricket can only develop a player to a certain level.

it's always been that way. i'm just making the point that sl cricket has not gone backwards as much as people think. it's just that we are missing the 2-3 superstars we've always had for the last 20 years and it's making the team look bad.

 

[anuk]

Their test side have lost Sangakkara, Mahela and Dilshan (and prior to that Samaraweera) all in a short period. Those 4 scored over 35,000 test runs between them. And they will soon lose Herath their number 3 test wicket taker of all time.

They are left with a batting unit with very little experience and once Herath goes they will have a bowling unit with no player who has even taken 70 or 80 wickets at that level.

It's going to take them a few years to come out of this all.

yeah good that u mentioned samaraweera. the man was a run scoring machine who averaged 50 until his last year. his retirement was a bigger loss to sl than the retirement of mahela imo.

 

[Thivagar]

it's always been that way. i'm just making the point that sl cricket has not gone backwards as much as people think. it's just that we are missing the 2-3 superstars we've always had for the last 20 years and it's making the team look bad.

yeah good that u mentioned samaraweera. the man was a run scoring machine who averaged 50 until his last year. his retirement was a bigger loss to sl than the retirement of mahela imo.

It is hard to find 2-3 superstars, they don't pop out of nowhere. The only player with super star potential is Tharindu Kaushal. I don't see any other star potential so far. Vithanage seems like he is one but he comes of as another dumbo like Tharanga. THaranga had 5 centuries by the time he was 21, They all came in England and NZ(4 of the 5 ?). He ended up not having any brain growth like Afridi.

Samaraweera's loss isn't bigger than Mahela's. Samaraweera did more Zimbabwe, India, Bangladesh and Pakistan bashing on their flattest decks. Mahela was a clutch player in ODI, bigger clutch than Sanga.

Regardless this team is going downhill, it will be the likes of WI. WI at least has talent SL doesn't. WI will always have stronger, faster and more explosive athlete. SL players look either pregnant or walked out of liberated Aushwitz.

 

[Thivagar]

I still think, they will have a few lean months before going back to their usual self.

If every country started going the WI way, only India, Australia and England will be left and of course the IPL will be played over 9 months with double headers both side of Diwali

I'd dig watching IPL for 5 months with at least 15 teams. They must have the top quality players though. I don't wanna see Ashok Dinda and Munaf Patel, I wanna see Broad, Anderson, Starc and so on. It will give more values to international matches when they are actually being played in that rest of the 7 month schedule.

 

[Pakpak]

It is hard to find 2-3 superstars, they don't pop out of nowhere. The only player with super star potential is Tharindu Kaushal. I don't see any other star potential so far. Vithanage seems like he is one but he comes of as another dumbo like Tharanga. THaranga had 5 centuries by the time he was 21, They all came in England and NZ(4 of the 5 ?). He ended up not having any brain growth like Afridi.

Samaraweera's loss isn't bigger than Mahela's. Samaraweera did more Zimbabwe, India, Bangladesh and Pakistan bashing on their flattest decks. Mahela was a clutch player in ODI, bigger clutch than Sanga.

Regardless this team is going downhill, it will be the likes of WI. WI at least has talent SL doesn't. WI will always have stronger, faster and more explosive athlete. SL players look either pregnant or walked out of liberated Aushwitz.

I am surprised noone was groomed as a talent when it was clear after Sanga and Mahela your batting would struggle. The body language during your two games vs NZ was so poor it was shocking. They didn't look bothered at all.

I have always had SL as my second team, so its sad to see them so poor.

 

[anuk]

It is hard to find 2-3 superstars, they don't pop out of nowhere. The only player with super star potential is Tharindu Kaushal. I don't see any other star potential so far. Vithanage seems like he is one but he comes of as another dumbo like Tharanga. THaranga had 5 centuries by the time he was 21, They all came in England and NZ(4 of the 5 ?). He ended up not having any brain growth like Afridi.

Samaraweera's loss isn't bigger than Mahela's. Samaraweera did more Zimbabwe, India, Bangladesh and Pakistan bashing on their flattest decks. Mahela was a clutch player in ODI, bigger clutch than Sanga.

Regardless this team is going downhill, it will be the likes of WI. WI at least has talent SL doesn't. WI will always have stronger, faster and more explosive athlete. SL players look either pregnant or walked out of liberated Aushwitz.

Wasn't considering odis at all. Samare was a better player for me since 2008 or so.

Superstars did pop out of nowhere for us in the past. SL cricket has never had a lot of depth. We were just propped up by muralis, vaas, aravindas etc in the past. I actually think there is more depth in SL cricket than there was in the 90s or early 00s, it's that it's not top heavy as before. I just don't think looking at the national team only is a way to measure the health of the sport in SL.

 

[Thivagar]

I am surprised noone was groomed as a talent when it was clear after Sanga and Mahela your batting would struggle. The body language during your two games vs NZ was so poor it was shocking. They didn't look bothered at all.

I have always had SL as my second team, so its sad to see them so poor.

Wasn't considering odis at all. Samare was a better player for me since 2008 or so.

Superstars did pop out of nowhere for us in the past. SL cricket has never had a lot of depth. We were just propped up by muralis, vaas, aravindas etc in the past. I actually think there is more depth in SL cricket than there was in the 90s or early 00s, it's that it's not top heavy as before. I just don't think looking at the national team only is a way to measure the health of the sport in SL.

You need to have talents to be "groomed". You can't groom your hair if you are bald. If grooming is so easy, anyone could be groomed. Don't think Kohli was groomed to replace Sachin, he just made it because he had the talent and the will to reach the top. It is hard to train people to be intelligent. Talents like Chandimal, Vithanage, Kusal either lack brain or the ones with brain do not have enough talent.


I don't know about the past, but i'd rather have 4-5 really good players, with rest being fillers than 1 good player and everyone kinda being "meh". Lakmal, Pradeep sometimes look unplayable then other times they look like some of the Ranji trophy bowlers, boys those guys are far worse than anyone you could imagine. FC of 50 in SL = FC average of 30 in international. The FC is very poor. Another region division on top of the existing one is needed.

 

[anuk]

You need to have talents to be "groomed". You can't groom your hair if you are bald. If grooming is so easy, anyone could be groomed. Don't think Kohli was groomed to replace Sachin, he just made it because he had the talent and the will to reach the top. It is hard to train people to be intelligent. Talents like Chandimal, Vithanage, Kusal either lack brain or the ones with brain do not have enough talent.


I don't know about the past, but i'd rather have 4-5 really good players, with rest being fillers than 1 good player and everyone kinda being "meh". Lakmal, Pradeep sometimes look unplayable then other times they look like some of the Ranji trophy bowlers, boys those guys are far worse than anyone you could imagine. FC of 50 in SL = FC average of 30 in international. The FC is very poor. Another region division on top of the existing one is needed.

no doubt fc is poor. but is it poorer than what it was when we were last number 2 in the world in 2009 or whatever? not in my opinion.

i'm not questioning that the system in sl is flawed, it's always been flawed even when we were doing well.

we might be arguing two things. when somebody says sl is the next wi, that to me implies there has been a huge decline in the standards.

i'm just saying no such decline has taken place. it's just that the freak talents we produced in spite of the system have dried up. like i said, the national team is not necessarily a good barometer for the health of cricket in a country.

 

[Pantani]

I think the interest held in the sport should be enough to prevent an all out slump like West Indies'.

However I don't see anything other than middling mediocrity and near-minnow status for the immediate future, sadly. Lets not forget Herath could retire any day now, too.

 

[IcedEarth]

Dilruwan Perera had done some tweaks to his bowling since PHT Kaushal had been on the picture. Kaushal's style is sexy, with fastish, big off breaks, and getting people by bowling corkers, and easly makes an impression on selectors. Perera used to be subtle, but since last few months he has started giving it a mighty tweak. He may be the spinner who spins it most other than for Kaushal and Ashwin, among finger spinners.

It has been unbelievable why Perera is not making ODI side, especially with his batting prowess.

 

[Varun]

How can Sri Lanka go about playing more captivating cricket?

Let's face it: along with the West Indies, they are most hapless team going around. Watching them play is akin to witnessing paint dry, and none of their batsmen or bowlers, or even their commentators or stadiums are particularly memorable.

Make no mistake - any team's fans will expel a loud yawn when they see their country's FTP with a 5 ODI + 2 T20 series with this lot. This was the case even when the likes of Jayawardene and Sangakkara were in the team, leave alone their assorted collection of Pereras, Silvas and Mendises at present.

How should they go about changing thus? What should they do? Does the problem lie at the domestic level, or is it too deeply entrenched in the DNA of Sri Lankan cricket for this to be fixed? It's a crying shame that even relatively new Bangladesh evokes much more emotion in fans than a supposedly established team like Lanka.

 

[saintgrace]

Let's face it: along with the West Indies, they are most hapless team going around. Watching them play is akin to witnessing paint dry, and none of their batsmen or bowlers, or even their commentators or stadiums are particularly memorable.

Make no mistake - any team's fans will expel a loud yawn when they see their country's FTP with a 5 ODI + 2 T20 series with this lot. This was the case even when the likes of Jayawardene and Sangakkara were in the team, leave alone their assorted collection of Pereras, Silvas and Mendises at present.

How should they go about changing thus? What should they do? Does the problem lie at the domestic level, or is it too deeply entrenched in the DNA of Sri Lankan cricket for this to be fixed? It's a crying shame that even relatively new Bangladesh evokes much more emotion in fans than a supposedly established team like Lanka.

SL was lucky with jayasuria, de silva , wazz and murli lot in previous generation.
They were lucky with Jayawardhana, sankagara retired generation.

They are having hard time replacing their super stars. Maybe human resource problem.

 

[rhony]

Let's face it: along with the West Indies, they are most hapless team going around. Watching them play is akin to witnessing paint dry, and none of their batsmen or bowlers, or even their commentators or stadiums are particularly memorable.

Make no mistake - any team's fans will expel a loud yawn when they see their country's FTP with a 5 ODI + 2 T20 series with this lot. This was the case even when the likes of Jayawardene and Sangakkara were in the team, leave alone their assorted collection of Pereras, Silvas and Mendises at present.

How should they go about changing thus? What should they do? Does the problem lie at the domestic level, or is it too deeply entrenched in the DNA of Sri Lankan cricket for this to be fixed? It's a crying shame that even relatively new Bangladesh evokes much more emotion in fans than a supposedly established team like Lanka.

That's a bit harsh. They are still finding their feet after the retirements. They've shown glimpses of their potential against India in CT and here in the first game. The new coach will certainly help and I think they are on their way up from here. However, they lack an inspiring leader. If they can find an imposing, performing leader, you will see this lankan team fulfill their potential

 

[Mamoon]

They have always produced captivating batsmen. From Aravinda to Sanath to Sangakkara to Mahela to Dilshan to Perera to Mendis - they have always had batsmen who have been breathtaking when on song.

However, the lack of world class fast bowlers have held Sri Lanka back. Vaas was good but not exciting, and Malinga was too unorthodox to be everyone's cup of tea.

Instead of producing mystery chuckers one after another, they need to find ways of developing 2-3 top pacers who can hold their own in all formats. Their domestic cricket, especially their school cricket, is quite strong and will continue to produce quality batsmen. It is the bowling that they need to worry about.

Another problem for them - and it is a function of their small population - is the fact that their mediocre players are very, very poor. They make the mediocre players of others teams look world class, and they all go by the same name so it is hard to keep track of all the Pereras and Silvas.

 

[DeadBall]

Let's face it: along with the West Indies, they are most hapless team going around. Watching them play is akin to witnessing paint dry, and none of their batsmen or bowlers, or even their commentators or stadiums are particularly memorable.

Make no mistake - any team's fans will expel a loud yawn when they see their country's FTP with a 5 ODI + 2 T20 series with this lot. This was the case even when the likes of Jayawardene and Sangakkara were in the team, leave alone their assorted collection of Pereras, Silvas and Mendises at present.

How should they go about changing thus? What should they do? Does the problem lie at the domestic level, or is it too deeply entrenched in the DNA of Sri Lankan cricket for this to be fixed? It's a crying shame that even relatively new Bangladesh evokes much more emotion in fans than a supposedly established team like Lanka.

Akin to seeing paint dry? They recently beat both SA and Aus in their own backyard and have had very close interesting matches of late. Besides they have very good performing additions in their batting with the likes of the two Kusals, Gunathilaka promoted with a very able supporting cast of Tharanga, Thisara etc. They have a bit of a problem with their bowling but they are bound to learn and perform better in the near future.

 

[DRsohail]

Akin to seeing paint dry? They recently beat both SA and Aus in their own backyard and have had very close interesting matches of late. Besides they have very good performing additions in their batting with the likes of the two Kusals, Gunathilaka promoted with a very able supporting cast of Tharanga, Thisara etc. They have a bit of a problem with their bowling but they are bound to learn and perform better in the near future.

their bowling is nonexisting.Cant defend if pitch is a bit flat.

 

[Mr.Q]

Akin to seeing paint dry? They recently beat both SA and Aus in their own backyard and have had very close interesting matches of late. Besides they have very good performing additions in their batting with the likes of the two Kusals, Gunathilaka promoted with a very able supporting cast of Tharanga, Thisara etc. They have a bit of a problem with their bowling but they are bound to learn and perform better in the near future.

Completely agree with this. They’re not as bad as many people think. We Indians and Pakistanis find it boring because we play against them so often and the recent encounters have been mostly one sided.

Their batsmen look very confident now and are capable of taking on any bowling attack. They should get rid of that Tharanga guy and include another youngster. Bowling needs some work but there is talent.

 

[DeadBall]

their bowling is nonexisting.Cant defend if pitch is a bit flat.

Yes, they have to find/develop more T20 bowling specialists.

 

[DeadBall]

Completely agree with this. They’re not as bad as many people think. We Indians and Pakistanis find it boring because we play against them so often and the recent encounters have been mostly one sided.

Their batsmen look very confident now and are capable of taking on any bowling attack. They should get rid of that Tharanga guy and include another youngster. Bowling needs some work but there is talent.

Tharanga is alright atm given his experience. He did score a a 32* in last match of almost half the balls. Used to be an opener but now they much better options and I think he could be replaced once Chandimal comes back but I don't see many suitable replacements. He's like the SL Hafeez.

 

[IAJ]

West Indies just won a Test series against England..

And now SL have defeated SA in a Test match in SA.

And this is the most important format in cricket and one format both Poms and Proteas take seriously.

 

[jnaveen1980]

yes NExt West Indies lol you probably meant for a different reason.

 

[Hasan123]

Sri Lanka and West Indies have enough talent to remain competitive in all formats.

It's literally impossible to replace all those West Indies ATGs. If you are going to compare players to them than you will be disappointed. West Indies have had a difficult period but now they have some good talent coming through which will keep them competitive.

 

[JaDed]

Man even with such a nonsense board WI churns out awesome players, can only imagine what if they get their act together.

Its great from Lanka but they keep having such big highs and then big lows, they are the last Asian team to win a series in England as well 2014.