by Brian Thomas
The writing was on the wall , from a New Zealand perspective , as they choked in the first innings by being bowled out for 88 , in reply to Sri Lanka’s batting prowess of 602 for 5 declared.
It’s a riplys, believe it or not, equation, if you analyse the Kiwi batters attempt in the second innings. They gave the Sri Lankan bowlers a torrid time by piling up 350 runs , with Kane Williamson 46 , Glenn Phillips 78 ,Mitchell Santner 61 and Devon Conway 60.. The big question as to why they simply crumbled in their first innings and became victims of a massive leather hunt in conceding 602 runs and a school boy effort of 88 runs must be addressed before they take on the big boys India in an all important Test series on Indian soil.
Batters must learn from their counterparts, Sri Lanka, to bat for long periods to he able to compete in sub continental conditions. It is envisaged that it grips , spins, and spits when you play in India , Pakistan, and Sri Lanka . The batting unit failed not because of the lack of talent but due to application and self be belief. Tim Southee and his boys played into the hands of the host , that bowling on a bone dry pitch , whilst having a pre conceived idea of defending 80 % of the time when bowling was the down fall. Catches win matches, but it’s an infectious virus if you nurture it , in the back of your head , because the psychological issues or the guilt can create a sweaty palm by imagination. New Zealand has the batters to play on any challenging surface , but the question to be addressed is , are they still on a white ball mindset , since they played their last Test 7 months ago , with the Afghanistan one off Test called off due inclement weather.
My personal opinion is Tum Southee, and the boys were undercooked to take on a strong Sri Lanka outfit, especially in Galle. Rangana Herath is a fine spin bowling coach. He can not bowl for you, but his guidelines must be executed. This is a great learning curve for New Zealand, we hope they will take the positives and the experience to India and show the cricketing world that they are competitive even on sub continental wickets. Tim Southee mentioned it’s a difficult task for any touring team to win on these conditions. He must, as the captain of Black Caps, change that mindset. Dhananjaya de Silva did a sterling job in leading his side well.
Spinners Prabath Jayasuriya and Nimesh Peiris bowled 68 overs between themselves and took 9 scalps. A star is in the making Nimesh Pieris. He is a breath of fresh air and a great partner for Prabath Jayasuriya. Kamindu Mendis, congratulations on winning the man of the match award , Prabath Jayasuriya richly deserved the player of the series. Wish SLC could have awarded a special medal to William O ‘ Rourke for his excellent display of seam on a difficult fast bowlers pitch.
On behalf of all the Go for Gold subscribers, we wish the New Zealand players and the management staff a safe journey back home and remind you that Go for Gold will keenly follow your tour of India.
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