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Some images stick more readily in the mind than others. Among this
summer's most indelible sights have been an exhausted and exasperated
Peter Siddle on his haunches in Adelaide, Ricky Ponting bowing
graciously to the WACA ground at the end of his Test career, and Michael
Hussey barely able to contain his glee when carried from the SCG by
Siddle and Mitchell Johnson at the conclusion of his.
To these may now be added an embrace by two young Sri Lankan cricketers
upon the completion of the visitors' eight-wicket hiding of Australia at
Adelaide Oval. Lahiru Thirimanne
and Kushal Perera completed the task with panache and professionalism,
but their spontaneous outburst of joy upon reaching the target
demonstrated how much it meant to take their team to a first win of the
tour.
Thirimanne had the additional pleasure of reaching a century with the
winning boundary, and his fluency on a pitch no batsman found easy to
negotiate was the latest episode in the most promising subplot of Sri
Lanka's visit down under.
As Australia shuffle their players strenuously while looking ahead to
future assignments, it is arguable that the stronger signs of
regeneration are evident on the opposing side. Quietly, but notably, Sri
Lanka's batting is showing evidence of new and genuine growth, of the
kind that has eluded the nation's cricket team for a generation.
At the start of the tour, familiar concerns were raised about the
fragility of the talent beneath Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara.
They were raised in pitch at the moment Sangakkara's hand was shattered
by Johnson at the MCG. But following the contributions of a trio of
young batsmen over the Sydney Test and so far in the ODI series, those
voices of doubt are losing their edge.
None of Thirimanne, Dinesh Chandimal and Dimuth Karunaratne are entirely
new faces. All had played for their country before this tour, with
varying degrees of success. In Chandimal's case it has been a source of
curiosity for some time why he had not yet been granted a more permanent
place in the Test team; his composure at the crease and with the gloves
when replacing the injured Sangakkara in Sydney certainly indicated a
sate of readiness. Karunaratne is the more recent addition to the
national squad, and he emerged from the Test series having learned
plenty of lessons, putting them into practice with a refined 85 at the
SCG.
In terms of international exposure, Thirimanne is somewhere in between
the other two, having made his Test debut in England in 2011 and his ODI
bow the year before. In and out of the national team ever since, he
only joined this tour as a reinforcement after the string of injuries
suffered during an ignominious defeat in Melbourne. Nonetheless, the
Australians had reason to respect Thirimanne even before his flight
landed in Sydney ahead of the third Test.
His first encounter with them had been in a tour match when Michael
Clarke's team visited Sri Lanka before the 2011-12 summer, and a doughty
second innings century at P Sara Oval demonstrated a neat technique and
collected temperament that appeared likely to serve him well in the
future. A Test match appearance later on the same tour was less notable,
but even then Thirimanne showed a capacity to stick to the crease,
seeing off 79 deliveries before Siddle pierced his defence on the 80th.
Runs at home are a great thing for any batsman, but to make them
overseas in unfamiliar climes is to suggest that there is enough
vitality and resourcefulness within to succeed anywhere. Thirimanne knew
this when he shrugged off jetlag while walking to the centre of the
SCG, and against an Australian pace attack hungry for a rapid conclusion
to the series his 91 ensured the tourists would stay afloat for far
longer than they had managed in Melbourne. A source of frustration to
Thirimanne for its conclusion before a century was reached, that innings
was to be doubly unfulfilling when Australia ultimately pressed on to
inflict a five-wicket defeat.
| Thirmanne's strokeplay is considered rather than limited, for he is able to manoeuvre the ball to most parts of the ground, and at times can unfurl a drive to please those who have watched plenty of similar shots by his seniors | |||
All that was in Thirimanne's mind when he set about chasing a paltry
target in Adelaide. He walked to the wicket at the fall of Upul Tharanga
- who increasingly carries the haunted air of a talent unfulfilled - in
the first over of the pursuit, but aided by a composed Tillakaratne
Dilshan set about closing in on the required runs. Thirmanne's
strokeplay is considered rather than limited, for he is able to
manoeuvre the ball to most parts of the ground, and at times can unfurl a
drive to please those who have watched plenty of similar shots by his
seniors. Most importantly he seems to have found the ability to adjust
his batting to the circumstances, and now possesses most gears on the
continuum from stonewall to sprint.
Dilshan's departure, 34 runs short, moved Jayawardene to send in Perera,
who quickly showed his own shotmaking talent with a six swung to square
leg and a coruscating drive to the cover fence from a nonplussed Xavier
Doherty. But he reined himself in from there to allow Thirimanne a
chance to make the century that eluded him in Sydney. "Sydney Test,
after the match I thought I could have got a century," Thirmanne said
afterwards. "So that was in my mind when I was 90, so I tried to keep my
head still and play along the ground. After that Kushal helped me a lot
to score the hundred."
Having levelled the series, Perera and Thirimanne savoured the victory
with real feeling, for it had been as hard earned as it was deserved.
The Sri Lankan win in Adelaide may prove to be a key moment on this
tour. Moreover, this tour may prove a turning point in Sri Lankan
batting. In Thirimanne, Chandimal and Karunaratne, there is plenty of
reason to hope.
Daniel Brettig is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo. He tweets here
Feeds: Daniel Brettig
© ESPN EMEA Ltd.
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