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Journalism of Courage
Sri Lanka8217;s spate of unorthodox players 8212; Murali, Malinga, Mendis 8212; is not an accident, discovers Our Correspondent. They are meticulously scouted by a system that encourages cricketers who are different
It8217;s been a long, busy and unusual morning for Sri Lankan cricket8217;s head coach Jerome Jayaratne. Instead of interacting with youngsters in grass-stained cricketing gear at the academy, he is meeting men in formal suits and polished leather shoes in a conference hall. Jerome has been conducting interviews to pick an assistant coach and it8217;s quite evident that the scrutiny has been intense as he rubs his tired eyes before starting the conversation.
If you thought that it had something to do with the climatic conditions on the island that helped these special players grow on trees and all that Jayaratne 038; Co had to do was reach out and pluck them off, you would be very far from the truth. A simple statement by Jayaratne explains the deep thought-process that goes behind finding a bowler with six different variations in an over.
8220;Except in New Zealand, the pitches around the world are going flat. In South Africa, too, they8217;re fast but still flat. We realised that finger spinners are being hit out of the game. One now needs somebody who is a very good wrist spinner and gives the ball a good rip, or someone who is totally unorthodox. And once we find someone who8217;s different, we see to it that we push him to the top level,8221; says Jayaratne.
SCOUTING WITH CARE
It sounds perfect in theory but the crucial practical hurdle for the scheme to work is to first spot that 8216;different8217; bowler. For this, the Sri Lankan board has about 700 active coaches spread across the country, who are all linked to the national academy. The complex network explains how tough it would be for a talented cricketer to go unnoticed. Head coach Jayaratne has national coach Trevor Bayliss and the Lanka A coach under him, along with the national pace and spin coaches and their assistants.
There is a Coaching Education Department with three members, looking after batsmen, pacers and spinners, who are under-studies of the national pace and spin coaches. The coaches from the 8216;education department8217; travel to provinces 8212; comprising of three to four districts 8212; on regular scouting trips. Helping them are coaches with provinces, districts and schools who have a ready data of players from their region. With such a labyrinth spread over the small island, where virtually all districts or villages are wired, the red lights frequently flicker at the academy in Colombo when an unusual talent is spotted. With the coaches having a common agenda, uniformity in the system is maintained.
That8217;s the reason Sri Lankan wicketkeeper Kumar Sangakkara salutes the system when he speaks about the spate of unorthodox players in his country. 8220;Our cricketing structure allows these cricketers to blossom. That was how Malinga was discovered and that8217;s how there will always be someone who doesn8217;t go by the book. At times stylised coaching can be problem but we have a flexible system,8221; he says.
Sangakkara gives another reason for why cricketers with varied styles reach the top level in Sri Lanka. 8220;There are several players in our country who take to serious cricket a bit late. By the time they come to the academy they already have their own style that might not necessarily be the conventional one,8221; he says. And with the coaches making only minor changes to their natural style, the world 8212; programmed to seeing players imitating the MCC coaching manual 8212; sits up to take notice.
KEEP IT NATURAL
Lanka8217;s middle-order batsman Thilan Samaraweera gives credits to school coaches and the local set-up. 8220;After our 1996 World Cup win, the Sri Lankan board did the wise thing of concentrating on the school cricket. The emphasis was to continue the supply of natural cricketers and that8217;s how it has been since then,8221; he says.
Post Murali, the first unconventional cricketer to make an impact on international cricket was Malinga. The pace bowling coach at the academy Anusha Samarnayake talks about the subtle changes that he made in Malinga8217;s style. 8220;I changed his run-up a bit and altered his wrist position but never asked him to stop bowling with his slinging action. Players tend to get confused when you change too many things,8221; he says. Malinga acknowledges the role of the coach. He says that it may not happen every other day, but Sri Lanka will never be without a bowler who people call a 8220;freak8221;.
8220;After every three to four years, we are bound to get an unusual player. First there were Sanath and Murali. Now, when I am out, there is Mendis to take my place. With so many successes around, young players aren8217;t afraid to develop their own style,8221; he says.
While the world is waiting to crack the code of Mendis, a boy who wasn8217;t afraid to be a leggie and offie at the same time, another freak is waiting in the wings. Mendis8217;s spin partner in the Army XI, Seekkuge Prasanna, is someone who bowls his leggies with the arm-movement of a spinner delivering a flipper. Prasanna has just been drafted at the academy and those in the know speak of his terrific wrist and amazing rip. Another star ready to roll out from the assembly line at the freak factory?
