By Srian Obeyesekere
Sri Lanka’s inability to drive home pacer Dushmantha Chameera’s brilliant 5 for 24 haul well supported by slinger Matheesha Pathirana 2 for 27 dismantling England in the chaotic of 128 for 9 wickets when nigh all and sundry including super batsman Harry Brooks were simply bundled out but for No.5 Sam Curran’s rearguard 48, was a highly lamentable staining black mark 13 run loss from a high octane winning position was an indictment of the host team’s batting in a long running failure that must serve as a worrying setback to the Lankan expert coaching think tanks in surrendering to a 3-nil whitewash at Kandy’s hill capital Pallekelle International Cricket Stadium ahead of a world cup at Sri Lanka’s doorstep with the 10th edition of the ICC T20 cricketing fast fad short format showpiece about to unfurl at the SSC on Saturday.
Mucking it up from a winning position smacks of the hurting. Of a clear story of throwing out of the window of what was all Sri Lanka’s in a pathetic cave of Dasun Shanaka led batsmen virtually throwing victory out of the window at the utter failure to reach a moderate target.
That the England bowlers managed to turn it on from a holocaust of all its aces swallowed up by the Chameera-Pathirana strike when Chameera fired Ben Duckett out lbw for a first ball duck off the second ball of the innings after the visitors batted on the toss followed by Pathirana having Jacob Bethell caught behind by Kusal Mebdis for 3 fourth delivery of the third over with Dunith Wellalage clean bowling big showman, Tom Benton of the previous game for 7 and Pathirana making short shrift of the dynamo skipper Harry Brook caught by Dunith Liyanage for 4 in a third ball wrenching out followed by Jos Buttler bowled by Mahees Theekshana as England tottered on 5 for 47 after only 7.4 overs, smacked of nothing but a terrible let it slip of the unpardonable that the new albeit old Lankan skipper Shanaka would live with of failure at its height in falling prey to the 4 for 11 and for 14 Will Jacks spin heavy torpedoing.
Sri Lanka’s highest scorer was Kusal Mendis 26 with next best of 23 by Pathum Nissanka with the lesser of 14 by recalled Kamindu Mendis and Pavan Rathnayake 13.
While the bad result would largely be a sad day for the 34-year old Chameera whose career best international haul propelled him back to his best in an inquiry behest return not so long ago, the debacle must serve as s back to the drawing board for skipper Shanaka and the Lankan coaching think tanks for a virtual overnight turnaround going into cricket’s fast forward showpiece when they will be pitted against the toughest in the game.
England 128 for 9 (Curran 58, Chameera 5-24) beat Sri Lanka 116 (Bethell 4-11, Jacks 3-14) by 12 runs
