Day 1 or One day at Centurion?

This has never happened to Sri Lanka in the past decade or so when they happen to be tamed on their home soil. I remember Sri Lanka winning the test series 1-0 in 2004-05 with the hosts having a high upper-hand in the first test that was drawn aided with Kumara Sangakkara's 232. Now, Sri Lanka have been bowled out for just less than 200 runs n the board against the Proteas when they ended their innings at 180. The match was one of its kind with the Proteas piling up exactly half of what the Sri Lankan batsmen could manage hours before.

There was no batsmen from Sri Lanka who could post even 40 runs individually let alone a half century. I had written on this blog before about the lack of experienced bowlers in the Sri Lankan squad though their batting line up happens to be pretty decent. But, after this, it looks as though someone like Sanath Jayasuriya and Aravinda De Silva have to come back as 25 year olds to save their team from humiliating defeats. Noted batsmen from Sri Lanka namely - Tilekeratne Dilshan and Kumara Sangakkara could not manage more than 6 runs and one run respectively.

Batsmen who rode over 30 runs include Angelo Mathews who top scored 38, Jayawardane (30), Samaraweera (36) and Paranavitana (32) that comes up to 136 runs out of 180. It was not some Dale Steyn, Morkel or Jacques Kallis who did the damage with the ball but was some Vernon Philander who scalped 5 wickets in his third test against a strong batting line-up as mentioned above. Of course, a lot of support was provided from the other end by the experienced Dale Steyn who also picked up 4 wickets which was equally instrumental in the Sri Lankan batting collapse.

The match was played at South Africa which can form as an excuse for the touring team in case they fail to keep up their fans' hopes. With South Africa also being an equally strong outfit, the blame cannot be completely on the Sri Lankan team. One can say that, "had South Africa toured the sub-continent nation, they might have also met with the same fate". That forms the "ifs and buts of the story." Whatever, in days to come (in the ongoing 1^st test), with their batsmen giving up hopes, nothing much can be expected from their inexperienced bowlers.

Advantage always lies in the home team

Well if the history of cricketing nations is taken a close look at,it is the home team that has the upper hand especially in test matches. This is irrespective of which team is playing - be it the mighty Aussies (some 4-5 years down the lane) or the downtrodden West Indies. The home team always has its say. In the recent past or so, the list has included Bangladesh also when they had a drawn test against the West Indies recently though they had a loss earlier in the tournament. Now, the teams which clash against each other are Sri Lanka and South Africa.

Needless to be said, it would definitely be the Proteas who would have an upper hand in atleast test matches that are scheduled. The teams mentioned above are scheduled to play 3 tests and 5 one day internationals with a T20 game missing out due to reasons best known to the makers of the tournament. With this being the point regarding the hosts, all that would be left is to make that advantage count by South Africa. If their recent past (a year or so is considered), they have not fared badly though their performance is not outstanding either at home.

They drew the test series against India early this year when a mighty Dhoni led team India toured the African nation for a three match test series. That series should have been won by South Africa not only because they were the hosts but also due to the fact that India was not any extraordinary team like the Aussies of the early 2000s. Even the third test was dominated by the Indians which eventually ended in a draw. Following that, South Africa hosted Australia off-late which as everyone knows was drawn with both teams taking home a win. Since then, South Africa haven't hosted any other nation.

Though South Africa have never tasted success at home in test series', they are yet to lose one to any other nation. The fact is also that they have not hosted majority of the teams namely New Zealand, Pakistan and Sri Lanka (which is due in days to come). And, in case they host also, the result can hardly be expected be any different. But,the discussion here is restricted to only Sri Lanka's tour of South Africa needless to be said. The discussion regarding their bowling is already over with only Dilhara Fernando being the experienced among the lot. But, their batsmen can say something. Let us see.