Rex Clementine
at Pallekele

Number five is not the easiest position to bat in ODI cricket and very few have succeeded in the role. Arjuna Ranatunga, Mahela Jayawardene and Angelo Mathews are cases in point. Sometimes, with players seniority going up, they also move up the order absorbing the lion’s share of 50 overs of the innings. However, despite his elevation as vice-captain, Asalanka has remained at number five and has done a fabulous job for the team.

In the second ODI against Afghanistan on Sunday at Pallekele, Asalanka played a match winning role posting an unbeaten 97 and enabled the team to post a total of 308. Afghanistan could only manage 153 runs and lost the contest by 155 runs as Sri Lanka took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.

In his brief career so far, we have seen Asalanka soaking in all the pressure during run chases and scripting some famous wins. But on Sunday, he showcased another aspect of his game in setting up a total. His choice of strokes, his decision making and smartness were all exhibited and he’s proving to be a vital cog in the side.Not too long before, it can be assured that Asalanka will take up a spot among the top ten batters in the official ICC Rankings.

After the World Cup flop, it was a vital series win for Sri Lanka. Afghanistan were a team on the rise following their World Cup heroics where they defeated three former champions – England, Sri Lanka and Pakistan. They finished the competition sixth and qualified for the Champions Trophy whereas Sri Lanka finished a disappointing ninth and were knocked out of the Champions Trophy.

“Very pleased with the effort to finish the series with a win with a game to spare. It’s not done yet. Ideally, we would like to complete a 3-0 sweep,” Asalanka told journalists at the post-match media briefing.

“Number five is a pressure position. At times you’ll have to come out to bat with the score on ten for three or with the score on 200 for three. I have played over 50 games and I have been getting a lot of input from the coaches about how to go about things. Pleased with the way I have done it,” Asalanka went onto say.

Sri Lanka were notorious for batting collapses as showcased during the World Cup and the Asia Cup prior to that. On Sunday though at 147 for four with 21 overs remaining in the innings, Asalanka addressed the issue.

“Although Kusal and Sadeera were dismissed in quick succession, they had maintained a good run rate. The plan was to bat till the 40th over. Janith Liyanage took the pressure off me and we were able to go at run a ball and that partnership enabled us to get to 300.”

Asalanka was left stranded on 97 not out and missed out on his fourth century. He was on 96 facing the penultimate ball of the innings and could manage only a single leaving fellow Richmond College player Wanindu Hasaranga with the last ball.

“I had the century in mind. I thought the ball went to the gap and wanted to get two runs. Wanindu wanted me to play the last ball, but I heard that call late. We were attacking at that point and we were looking at 320. When we were walking back we chatted that we were about ten runs short.”

The pitches at Pallekele have been tailor-made for batting with Sri Lanka scoring more than 300 runs in both games. Sri Lanka had the habit of preparing rank turners for home games in a bid to win contests but their weaknesses were exposed when they went for events like the World Cup where usually you get batsmen friendly tracks.

“After the World Cup, we spoke about pitches a lot. Wickets we played at home last year, we couldn’t post totals above 300. But since the World Cup, we have got good wickets. If we are going to get flat wickets for ICC events, we should play on flat wickets at home too. Our bowlers are also learning the art of bowling and containing sides on good wickets.”

During the second ODI, Afghanistan were in the hunt with the run chase going well as Rahmat Shah and Ibrahim Zadran posted half-centuries. But soon after the two experienced batters were dismissed, there was a sensational collapse

“The partnership between Rahmat and Ibrahim was a bit of headache. I was chatting to Kusal Mendis and we expected a close game. We wanted to keep overs of our best bowlers towards the end. We wanted to leave them with about 100 runs in the last ten overs. Once the dot ball pressure came they cracked under pressure. Wanindu was awesome today and so were the seamers to create that pressure.”

Asalanka was at the non-striker’s end when Pathum Nissanka became the first Sri Lankan to score a double hundred in the first ODI. He celebrated the moment by lifting up his subdued colleague.

“I really like to watch Pathum bat. Absolutely fabulous knock. I really enjoyed it. Nobody had scored a double hundred before. Glad I was out there in the middle when that happened.”