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This is an archive article published on May 15, 1999

Lanka8217;s damp begining in the rain

LONDON, May 14: Sure enough, it rained at Lord's to kick off what threatens to be a wet and frustrating World Cup. Maybe as a result, def...

LONDON, May 14: Sure enough, it rained at Lord8217;s to kick off what threatens to be a wet and frustrating World Cup. Maybe as a result, defending champions Sri Lanka choked and spluttered to 204 in 48.4 overs against the hosts England, being bowled out three balls after an early lunch was taken because of a drizzle.

Barely four overs had been bowled when the players were rushed off the field as though they were wearing see through clothes. Sri Lanka packed seven batsmen to counter England8217;s four-man seam attack, but the reckless abandon with which they batted when play resumed after a brief break called for twice the number.

Mahanama, vastly underutilised in recent times and eclipsed by the arrivistes, opened with Jayasuriya, suggesting that Sri Lanka were going in for what can best be called a hot-cold opening pair instead of a hot-hot combo. But after weathering the steam of Darren Gough and the waywardness of Ian Austin to put on 40, the orthodox opener got his wires crossed and essayed shot at Mullallyhe wouldn8217;t want his children to see. Herein, one already began to see the essential difference between the last World Cup and this one. When these two sides last met in the sub-continent, the Lankans smashed English bowlers for 123 in the first 15.

Here they plodded to 54 for two as Gough bowled fast and true, and Alan Mullally, England8217;s bowling find of the season, made quick inroads with three quick wickets obtained with a testing line and cunning movement. At 65 for 5, Asita D8217;Silva, a World Bank executive and a Sri Lankan supporter who flew in this morning from Washington, was beginning to wonder if it was worth the 600 airticket and the 60 quick match ticket.

But the Sri Lankan skipper, surely the Buddha of cricket, stood benignly amid the ruins, and with the help of wicketkeeper Kalluwitharana, nudged and poked the Lanka innings out of terminal decline.

In a caustic article in a London paper, the Australian leg spinner Shane Warne has twitted Ranatunga, rubbishing his batsmanship and hison-field demeanor. Baloney.

Watching him navigate the Lankan innings under such dicey circumstances, one can easily say the General8217;s career, now seeing its fifth World Cup, may still outlast Warne8217;s.

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Lord8217;s is really where the cricketing greats like to showcase their class, but the compactly built Kallu, bold and plebian in his approach, pays no attention to orthodoxy or style. He blasted his way out of trouble, as if he was completely unaware of his teams pitiful plight, with a range of extravagant strokes that scattered the English fieldsmen like startled chitterlings. He may as well have been playing a club game in Colombo instead of a tetchy inaugural game at Lord8217;s.

He made 50 at almost run a ball and baled Sri Lanka to a more respectable 149 with more than 15 overs to go when the portly Lord Ranatunga, whose amble between the wicket for singles present one of the more delightful sights in cricket, departed unexpectedly with a loose cut shot.The recovery was significant but not substantial.

Sansthe guiding force, Kallu went soon after and the Lanka innings went into disarray. A few bold strokes by the tailenders carried them to 204. But at least Lanka have something to bowl at.

Scoreboard

Sri Lanka versus England Group A league match at Lord8217;s

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England won the toss and put Sri Lanka in to bat first

Sri Lanka

Sanath Jayasuriya c Hick b Mullally 29 52 balls; 4215;4

Could not take his bat away from a rising outswinger

Roshan Mahanama c Hick b Mullally 16 30b; 2215;4

Top edged an ungainly hoist, second slip ran back 10-15 yards for the catch

Marvan Atapattu c Thorpe b Austin 3 9b

Slashed at one outside the off stump

Hashan Tillekaratne c Stewart b Ealham 0 12b

A faint edge to keeper while trying to leg glance

Aravinda de Silva c Thorpe b Mullally 0 6b

Leaden footed to an angled outswinger

Arjuna Ranatunga c Hussain b Ealham 32 42b; 2215;4

Cut hard but taken well low down at point

Romesh Kaluwitharana c Stewart b Mullally 57 66b;7215;4

lost patience, casually snicked one moving away to keeper

Chaminda Vaas not out 12 27b

Eric Upashanta c Thorpe b Hollioake 11 25b; 1215;4

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An uppish on drive in short mid-wicket fielder8217;s hands

Pramodya Wickramasinghe c Stewart b Austin 11 18b;1215;4

Caught behind while trying to steer to third man

Muthiah Muralitharan b Gough 12 8b; 2215;4

moved inside out for slog over covers but missed a fast, straight yorker

Extras:lb 9, w 9, nb 3: 19

Totalall out in 48.4 overs: 204

Fall of wickets:1-42 Mahanama, 11 overs, 2-50 Atapattu, 13.1, 3-63 Jayasuriya, 16.4, 4-63 Tillekaratne, 17.1, 5-65 Aravinda, 18.4, 6-149 Ranatunga, 34 overs, 7-155 Kalu, 36.5, 8-174 Upashantha, 43.5, 9-190 Wickeramasinghe, 47.2

Bowling:

Gough 8.4-0-50-1

Austin 9-1-25-2

Mullally 10-1-37-4

Ealham 10-0-31-2

Hick 3-0-19-0

Adam Hollioake 6-0-21-0

Flintoff 2-0-12-0

To win England need 205 in 50 overs 4.10 runs per over