Mendis needs to stand test of time: Buchanan

Former Australian coach John Buchanan says that Ajantha Mendis should be judged on a long-term basis.

Praising the performance of Sri Lanka’s mystery bowler Ajantha Mendis against the star-studded Indian batting line-up in the just concluded three-Test series, former Australian coach John Buchanan says the youngster should be judged on a long-term basis.

“Mendis reminds me a bit of Johnny Gleeson, though he releases the ball much quicker, is taller and stronger. He also has good change of pace,” he said in Mumbai on Tuesday.

Buchanan is in the city to conduct a two-day selection trial at the Goregaon Sports Club for the IPL franchise outfit Kolkata Knight Riders, of which he’s the chief coach.

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The Australian said he can’t say for sure why Mendis succeeded against the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid and V V S Laxman, the `Fab Four’ of the Indian middle order batting who were not unduly bothered by a genius like Shane Warne in his and their prime.

“I don’t know the reason (whey they failed against Mendis). As far as Warne was concerned, over a period of time people read him more. But Warne’s ability stood the test of time like any great batsman or bowler’s. It’s a testing time for him (Mendis). His action has not been studied in detail (by opposing batsmen), not been exposed enough.”

The 26-year-old Mendis, who played one match for the Kolkata franchise in the IPL, grabbed a record 26 wickets in his debut three-Test series. More importantly, he did not allow the Indian middle order to rake up big scores with the result that Tendulkar and Ganguly failed to reach three figures from the whole series.

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