Big battle of bitter rivals

After their return from England, the first casualty was Arjuna Ranatunga, the father figure of Lanka cricket, on and off the field. The man who once could do nothing wrong had to be sacked, if for nothing else than to give the impression that remedial steps are being taken to revitalise Sri Lankan cricket — bedevilled with an upheaval in itsBoard, which at the moment is functioning as an interim body on the orders of the court. Not only Ranatunga, the greatest batsman to come from this island, but Arvinda de Silva too had to go from its one-day side. The fitness and form of both were suspect, though these two still retain their places in the Test side.

It is a new-look side which Sanath Jayasuriya has been given to lead. Jayasuriya, the left-handed wizard from Matara — another coastal town about 40 kilometres from here — has, of late, himself been beset with many problems, his batting form being one of them.

Jayasuriya, a devout Buddhist, is known to be a man of simple habits. Marriage last year did not see an upswing in his batting form. In fact, he lost his strokes which used to give his side a galloping start in the one-dayers. A divorce, just before the World Cup, did not help matters and the downward slide continued. Maybe this new responsibility and a promise of a new life ahead is the spur which Jayasuria needs to uplift his and histeam’s fortunes which at the moment appears too limited on both fronts — batting and bowling. Which team wouldn’t find it difficult to find replacements for Ranatunga and Aravinda.

Sri Lanka’s rivals for tomorrow, Australia, have proved that they are the best one-day outfit in the world. In Australia, Muttiah Muralitharan may be a villain — a chucker who has no business to play international cricket — but here, the wily off-spinner is a hero whose exploits are still keeping the Sri Lankan flag afloat in international cricket.

The teams (from)

Sri Lanka: S Jayasuria, M Jayawardena, M Muralitharan, R Kuluwitharana, C Vass, M Atapattu, U Chandana, P Wickramasinghe, N Zoysa, A Gunawardena, S Perera, R Arnold, C Silva, N Perera & Indika de Seram.

Australia: S Waugh, S Warne, M Waugh, M Bevan, A Dale, D Fleming, A Gilchrist, J Gillispie, D Lehman, G McGrath, D Martyn, T Moody, R Ponting and A Symonds.

Umpires: Asoka de Silva & Peter Manuel.

Match referee: CammieSmith (W Indies)

Back to the future, but …

India, who play their first match of the tournament on August 22 against Australia at Galle, had their plans of a long work-out thwarted by rains in the morning.

Heavy showers in Colombo meant that the Indian team, which has had a few days preparatory camp in Madras and seem dissatisfied with it due to the lack of a trainer, were banking on a couple of days’ strenuous workout here. There were other reasons for many Doubting Thomases to feel disappointed as they were keen to find out whether Sachin Tendulkar is really match fit or not.

The stiff back’ theory in the background of Tendulkar’s layoff from the game prior to the World Cup, has left many wondering whether the little maestro may not be making a mistake by playing here. In Chennai, he did develop pain in his back, something akin to the spasms he had against Pakistan last year, forcing him to get treatment in London. It was only when Dr Anant Joshi flew in to Chennai from Bombay andTendulkar himself batted in the nets and did some workout, that the doctor was convinced’ Tendulkar was fit to play.

In the end, the final decision was left with the Indian captain himself, who declared himself fit for the tour. It was quite obvious from Tendulkar’s reaction during the press conference yesterday that he would not like to be reminded of his stiff back in Chennai. And if the man himself says he is perfectly fit, there is no reason to doubt him, especially after the team doctor, Dr Ravindra Chadha, and Dr Joshi declared him fit. Is it the end of the chapter or like everything else connected with India cricket, there’s still room for speculation?