Marvellous Marvan looks to feed off best attack

Yet, by the same token, they have also shed the meek and mild image with that inferiority complex which has marked them as easy pushovers; even when ‘Mr Cool’ Arjuna Ranatunga, pushed his considerable bulk around, the gentle nature of those who inhabit Paradise was at times too obvious.

‘‘If it is needed we’ll give it back’’, the Sri Lanka vice-captain said when quizzed about the friction between the Aussies and the Lankans when the two sides meet. ‘‘We had some enjoyable games in this past series in Australia, but we have learnt to play it a lot harder.’’

The way Atapattu and the team look at it, ‘‘We are quite happy being the underdog; it has worked well for us in this tournament as the focus has been on the other teams.’’

‘‘The way we played against South Africa (at Kingsmead) is the way we wanted’’, he said. ‘‘We brought our slow bowlers into the attack at the right time to curb their stroke players. We have the type of attack to push pace or spin as the situation warrants.’’

The Lankans are happy with the pitch as the surface will give batsmen such at Jayasuriya, Atapattu, Aravinda de Silva and Kumar Sangakkara a chance to play their shots. Being a day game also takes away the artificial atmosphere often introduced by floodlighting, as say in Durban or Cape Town.

Atapattu’s innings against South Africa was notable for its quality, technical expertise and run-scoring opportunities against an attack which lacked direction and the nous to handle the pressure of playing a match they needed to win to stay in the World Cup.

This is where Atapattu’s maturity showed how much he has grown as a batsman. The innings at Lord’s may have carried its own stamp of textbook perfection, but this one was, for quality, a rare gem.

There are those who continue to write about Sachin Tendulkar’s innings against Pakistan as is it was something special; well, they glossed over the dropped catches and, as they are working off a TV screen, forget the obvious flaws. Also forgotten in the rush to praise Tendulkar was the contribution of Rahul Dravid and Yuvraj Singh, who needed to score about 100 runs between them to get India home.

Atapattu deserved the garlands of bouquets about the way he fashioned his innings with his coverdriving among the best of the tournament. He may come across as a quiet, understated batsman, yet there is an intensity and focus about his game which has all too often been overlooked.

Underdogs they may be; it would be wise, though to remember that they can roar when needed and in this tournament the Sri Lankan lion is slowly awakening from its long slumber.