Sri Lanka to rejig batting order after Sangakkara exit
COLOMBO: The post Kumar Sangakkara era will start in earnest for Sri Lanka when the third Test against India starts on Friday. Although the series is 1-1 and the hosts made a tremendous fightback to win the first Test, batting has been a huge concern.
With the record-breaking batsman retiring with the second Test, which India won by 278 runs at the P Sara Oval, and with most other batsmen struggling, getting the balance right will be important.
On Wednesday, much ahead of the rest of the team trooped in, reserve ‘keeper Kushal Perera toiled hard in the heat and humidity, fine-tuning his glovework at the Sinhalese Sports Club ground. He took catches and then kept wicket with two support staff members playing the role of bowler and batsman.
Dinesh Chandimal, who hammered 162 in the Galle Test to pull his team out of trouble and to victory, has said he would like to bat higher than No 6 but for that he will have to be relieved of his keeping duty. However, he has been selected as wicketkeeper for the entire series.
Skipper Angelo Mathews had said after the second Test that it would be difficult. “Chandi is also keeping and it’s not easy to bat in the top four and keep for long. We will take that call but we have our options open,” he said.
However, it remains to be seen whether the team management shuffles the batting line-up and includes Perera, who is yet to play Tests.
Seasoned batsman Upul Tharanga is likely to come in, and take the No 3 slot vacated by Sangakkara. Tharanga has just one century in 20 Tests and had one half-century and three scores in the 40s in the recent home series against Pakistan. The hosts badly need to bolster the batting. Fellow left-hander Jehan Mubarak didn’t look the part in the first two Tests and could be dropped.
Mathews, the only bright spot among the top five batsmen, has called for patience with the young side. “You all should understand that it is a young team. We just have to be a little patient till they settle in their roles.”