Sports
Sri Lanka in shambles in second Test
Rex Clementine in Bangalore
India have not just got the world’s best franchise tournament, they also have a robust Test team and Sri Lanka with a bloated First Class system were no match for the hosts as they were heading for a heavy defeat in the second Test here in Bangalore inside three days.
You can pardon Sri Lanka’s players for not being fit to hold a candle to the Indians as their opponents’ skill levels are far superior. But what is unpardonable is their mindless selections and sloppy cricket.
Niroshan Dickwella and Kusal Mendis are making a comeback since being suspended and a close look would tell you that they have learned little although they have been doing time for more than six months.
On the first day’s play, Mendis walked out to the field wearing a floppy hat although it’s a tradition for players to wear their Test cap on the first session of a Test match. It’s a tradition started by one of the nation’s exemplary leaders by the
name of Marvan Atapattu and maybe we should not expect lesser mortals like Mendis to follow suit. It is a man of Mendis’ stature the current selection committee appointed as vice-captain in May last year giving us a clear indication that here’s a future Test captain. Just in case that doom’s day dawns, Sri Lanka’s team meetings will be happening at the Cheers Pub. To their credit, the rest of the Sri Lankan players were wearing their Test caps.
Sri Lanka have done some bizarre things this tour and they opened batting with Mendis on day one and that experiment lasted less than three overs. Then there’s Niroshan Dickwella, his partner in crime.
Dickwella’s reviewing has been horrendous for many years but Sri Lankan captains continue to depend on him. His counterpart Rishab Pant has been excellent giving skipper Rohit Sharma sound advice. In India’s first innings, Dickwella prompted his captain to review leg before wicket decisions on three occasions and on all three occasions it emerged that the batsmen had nicked the ball. The only advice you should be getting from Dickwella is which restaurants in Colombo have free corkage.
India’s lower middle order batsmen have cleverly farmed the strike from the tail-enders and helped the team score significant totals. Dickwella meanwhile is happy to give the strike back to the lower order batters. He is more content in finishing not out to boost up his average. The suspension has meant nothing for Dickwella. He continues to be impulsive, impatient, incompetent and incorrigible.
On a track where the bowlers had lot of assistance, India managed to score 252 runs having won the toss. Sri Lanka had reduced them to 126 for five but the last five batsmen contributed another 126 to help the team to a competitive total.
Sri Lanka were shot out for 109 runs in their first innings and at one stage were in danger of being bowled out for their lowest score against India. None of the batters managed a half-century as Jasprit Bumrah was on the money finishing with five wickets.
India declared their second innings on 303 for nine. Rishab Pant was like batting on a different wicket as he smashed 50 off 27 balls with six fours and two sixes. He broke Kapil Dev’s Indian record for fastest half-century in Tests. Kapil had scored in 30 deliveries against Pakistan 40 years ago. Pant’s record means nothing much against this hapless bowling attack.
Sri Lanka finished day two on 28 for one chasing an improbable target of 447. They still need 419 runs with nine wickets in hand.
With just one round left in the group stage, Dambulla hit the top of the National Super League (NSL) table like a runaway train, pulling off a breathtaking run chase that left Kandy shell-shocked at the R. Premadasa Stadium. In a high-octane encounter that had lot of twists, Dambulla played out of their skins to snatch victory from the jaws of what looked like certain defeat.
Chasing a towering 392 in just 69 overs, the Dambulla batters threw caution to the wind and came out swinging. They crossed the finish line with 25 balls to spare, making the improbable seem routine.
At the top of the order, Nishan Madushka dropped anchor and played the sheet anchor role to perfection, compiling a masterful 126 off 153 balls. He stitched together a solid 136-run opening stand with Ron Chandraguptha, who chipped in with a stylish 64, laying the perfect foundation for the fireworks to follow.
But the real show-stopper was none other than Dasun Shanaka. Despite being courted by a slew of T20 leagues flashing big bucks, Shanaka stayed loyal to red-ball cricket — and he makes it count. He walked in with the scoreboard ticking and turned the game on its head with a whirlwind century off just 56 deliveries. It was a blitzkrieg that featured nine sizzling boundaries and six towering sixes. When Shanaka’s in the zone, bowlers might as well be bowling with a bar of soap.
From 286 for 1, Dambulla had a minor hiccup, losing quick wickets and stumbling to 326 for 5. But the damage had been done — Shanaka’s thunderous assault had knocked the stuffing out of the Kandy attack. All that remained was for the tail to wag, nudge a few singles, and coast home with room to spare.
Akila Dananjaya, meanwhile, continued to turn heads with a match bag of ten wickets. But while his performance was eye-catching, any talk of a national recall should come with a pinch of salt — his action, having been under the microscope before, will need a clean bill of health before selectors roll the dice.
Down south in Hambantota, Galle all but booked their ticket to the final, thanks to a first-innings win over Jaffna. Unless they somehow manage to shoot themselves in the foot in their last group game, they should be packing their bags for the final.
Ramesh Mendis played the unlikely hero, batting at number eight and top-scoring with a gutsy 124 to take Galle to 374, well past Jaffna’s 305.
Jaffna’s response in the second innings was spirited, with Angelo Mathews rolling back the years and crafting a classy century as they made 354 for five.
Rain played spoil sport with only 6.4 overs possible on day one and a further 55 overs on day two and that left little room for a result.
North Korea has held the Pyongyang International Marathon for the first time in six years, welcoming some 200 foreign runners to the streets of the reclusive country’s capital.
The marathon, which was launched in 1981, took place annually in April to celebrate the birth of its founding leader Kim Il Sung.
Before Sunday’s marathon, the race was last held in 2019, wherein 950 foreigners participated. North Korea sealed itself off the following year, when the Covid-19 pandemic hit.
North Korea has been slow to reopen since, allowing only Russian tourists into its capital since last year.
Runners have had to enter the country as part of an organised tour group, as was the case before the pandemic.
Koryo Tours, a Beijing-based travel agency listed as an “exclusive partner” on the event website, offers six-day marathon tours at 2,195 euros ($2,406) including flights to and from Beijing.
“The Pyongyang Marathon is an extremely unique experience as it provides an opportunity to interact with locals,” the agency wrote on its website.
Sunday’s marathon route took participants past landmarks across the city, including the Kim Il Sung stadium, the Arch of Triumph built to commemorate Kim Il Sung’s role in resisting Japanese rule, and the Mirae Future Scientists’ Street said to be a residential district for scientists and engineers.
Pictures online show the stadium – where runners start and finish their race – filled with spectators, many of them cheering and waving gold-coloured paper flags.
Pak Kum Dong, a North Korean runner, told Reuters news agency: “The eyes of our people on me helped me to bear the difficulties whenever I feel tired.”
There is no publicly available information on race results.
North Korea had only statred to scale back Covid-19 restrictions in the middle of 2023.
In Feburary, it allowed some Western tourists into the remote, eastern city Rason, but suspended those tours just weeks after.
[BBC]
Noor Ahmad, the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) left-arm wristspinner, continues to head the Purple Cap table with ten wickets from four games. His spell of 4 for 18 in CSK’s first game against MI, remains his best so far.
DC’s Mitchell Starc who picked up his maiden five-for in T20s, against SRH remains second on the list with nine wickets in three games.
GT’s Mohammed Siraj equalled Starc’s tally on Sunday night with his own IPL best, albeit he has played four games to Starc’s three. Siraj picked up 4 for 17 against SRH to hand them their four successive loss, and was named the Player of the Match.
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