by Rex Clementine

There was knee jerk reaction from the national selection panel following Sri Lanka’s heart-breaking last ball defeat to New Zealand in Christchurch. Rather than addressing burning issues and long-standing problems, they were blaming Niroshan Dickwella for the defeat after the wicketkeeper had a poor game dropping Kane Williamson and making a little contribution with the bat.

The current selection panel is quick to take credit when things go right but when things go wrong, they waste no time in finding scapegoats. They have conveniently forgotten that Niroshan Dickwella is a monster they created.

When Dickwella was on suspension, instead of grooming the nation’s next wicketkeeper, the selectors adopted temporary measures by giving the gloves to Dinesh Chandimal for the home series against West Indies.

Then they recalled Dickwella back into the squad soon after his suspension ended. That was in Mohali last year. The side was in trouble but Dickwella being Dickwella wasted no time in sweeping Ravindra Jadeja taking on the two men placed square of the wicket for the top edge and he was dismissed cheaply.

This is not a lack of game awareness. This is pure stubbornness and not playing for the team’s cause. A strong selection panel would have axed Dickwella for the next Test in Bangalore.

Even now when they have finally decided to axe him the keeping gloves will again go to Chandimal, who has been one of the team’s best batters in the last couple of years. Keeping duties will diminish his effectiveness as a batsman and you wonder why the selectors have failed to groom a replacement for Dickwella. Is he indispensable in their books?

Dickwella experiment has ended after 54 Tests and he’s got only himself to blame for that. Despite the costly fumble of Williamson, you’ve got to accept the fact that Dickwella is Sri Lanka’s best keeper. He may not be in the class of Prasanna Jayawardene but among the current keepers, he’s the best. It’s all the drama that he does behind the stumps that’s crap. The problem is not with the drama but his inability to convert starts and throwing his wicket away after being well set. Lessons should have been taught long before he ended up playing 50 Tests.

One dropped catch seems pretty harsh for someone to be axed but that’s how the game goes. You’ve got away with too many soft dismissals and when your dropped catch has cost the side a game and probably a place in the World Test Championship final, your mistakes are magnified.

If Dickwella doesn’t make a comeback it will be a crying shame. He was one of the brightest prospects to emerge when he first came onto the scene almost ten years ago. Like so many before him, he’s faded away without fulfilling the promises.