Cricket fans here and abroad are utterly disappointed with the recent poor performances of our cricketers. We were almost beaten by Bangladesh, and we had a thorough beating from India.
Our cricketers are consistent in two aspects: Beating world records and losing consistently.
Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket has not only undone our cricketers’ techniques but also made our players cricket-weary. This weariness is to be seen even in greats such as Tendulkar.
The human system has limited endurance, and physical weariness, unfitness and injury are only to be expected when cricketers have to face a long series of encounters. It won’t be long before the spectators too start to show symptoms of extreme cricket weariness.
In this globalised world of ours, cricket has become a commercialised commodity. This phenomenon has given rise to a new brand of mudalalis, similar to those stethoscope mudalalis who are driven by a greed for profit and who have no sense of values. The economic crisis in the West and in Japan has been attributed by some to the greed that a consumer society fosters.
The techniques adopted by India and other international teams should be an abject lesson to our cricketers, in all aspects of the game. There is no hurry to score even in the shorter type of game, and most of the time the ball is kept grounded with fine placement. These players are technically sound in guarding the wicket and wearing out the bowlers.
Our field placements are weak. We allow large gaps for the other team to score. Aiming at the wicket is disastrous. Extra runs are the order of the day. Our fielders wait till the ball comes to them, rather than run for it, as other teams do. As a result, we lose valuable time. Oftentimes, we find there is no one to cover the wicket, and we lose out on run-outs.
The future of cricket in Sri Lanka seems doomed, as we have signed an agreement for 10 long years with the Indian Premier League (IPL).
To get out of this mess, we will have to field a young team for international tournaments and a separate team for the IPL.
Cricket lover |
E-mail